Return to Megaton
by Gixxer600
Summary: After a year in the Capital Wasteland, Lone Wanderer Shelley finally returns home. But the repercussions of her actions in have had unexpected consequences both for the town and for her former lover, Colin Moriarty. Tension and conflict strain old friendships to breaking point, and just who is the enigmatic Mr Burke and what is he doing in Megaton? Rated M for a reason.
1. The Homecoming

**Author's Note: When I finished my **_**Megaton**_** fic, I knew that there was a story that was still yet to be told. **

**I knew what I wanted to happen, so I began work on a sequel, **_**Strictly Business**_**, more or less straight away, but without really having a clear idea of how I was going to get from A to B. That fic stalled pretty early on as I just couldn't get my head round it, but since then it has been bubbling away in the back of my mind and has finally found a direction that I'm happy with. There were also parts of that fic that I liked, and some of the writing has been incorporated into this new sequel **_**Return to Megaton**_**.**

**You don't have to have read **_**Megaton**_** first, but it would probably help to fill in the back-story for my LW and her experiences in the town, not to mention her rather stormy relationship with a certain Colin Moriarty…**

* * *

THE HOMECOMING

The thing about Megaton was that even after all this time, it didn't look any fucking different from the outside.

The jagged silhouette and thick steel walls still jutted up out of the ground like the broken teeth of some long dead monster, and the bleached wood and rusty metal gave the impression of something that remained standing just to piss off the rest of the DC Wasteland.

God knows, it wasn't love and attention that kept the town running.

If anything, Megaton probably existed just to spite those dumb assholes who thought it was an easy target and judging from the reports, there had certainly been enough of them lately.

Before they were all but wiped out by the Brotherhood of steel, there had been an Enclave attack on the town. A spirited defence by the militia wasn't quite enough to hold off the Enclave troops with their superior firepower and even more superior attitudes, but it seemed that Lucas Simms had managed to keep most of the inhabitants alive. Those that weren't carted off to Raven Rock anyway…

There had also been some raider activity in the area, most likely scavengers from Springvale, but Megaton had seen that kind of Wasteland trash before and had enough defenders left to kick them back to into the shitholes that they crawled out of without breaking too much of a sweat.

More recently there had been a bunch of nut jobs led by old Mother Curie, who thought that they were doing 'The Atom's work' by intercepting the Aqua-pura shipments that were coming in from the Project Purity facility, and irradiating them to bring on rad-mutation.

Yeah, like that shit was gonna fly.

Too many lives had been lost to bring fresh water to the people out here and be damned if some religious fanatic and her groupies were going to ruin it for the other townsfolk. Sure, harsh words and sound arguments would have stopped the old girl preaching for a time, but there was nothing like a bullet to the brain to end the spread of Curie's bullshit once and for all. Okay, it probably wasn't the most diplomatic solution to the problem, but it worked.

The Brotherhood of Steel had subsequently been informed that the shipments were no longer being tainted and Scribe Bigsley promised to resume delivering to the town. How long it would be before the next batch got here would be anybody's guess, but thanks to the town's antiquated water-purifier, Megaton had survived for long enough without it so a few more weeks...months weren't going to make that much difference.

Megaton would survive.

It always did.

"_Welcome to Megaton_."

The unenthusiastic greeting, spoken by the deceptively worn-out looking protectron that had been here almost as long as the town itself, was almost drowned out by the screeching of the town gates as they were hauled back by the archaic hydraulic system. At a cursory glance, it was clear that Deputy Weld had a few fresh scorch marks, a shit load of dents and even a bullet hole where its badge had once been, but it still stood guard over Megaton and, judging from the red glow in the palm of its 'hands', both lasers were fully functional and ready to fire in case of trouble.

Not that there was going to be any.

"_Thirsty partner?"_ Apparently even silence wasn't enough to discourage it from continuing it's 'meet and greet' protocols. _"Try Moriarty's. Coldest drinks in the Capital Wasteland._"

Moriarty's Saloon, the only watering hole for miles around offering bad beer and clean whores and _certainly_ the only place to be in Megaton if you found yourself with time on your hands and caps in your pocket.

Yeah...it was the place to be alright.

High up on the second level, the letters on the large sign above the saloon were painted in kind of an old-fashioned way, it certainly wouldn't have looked out of place in an old wild-west frontier town that was for sure. The sheer size of it meant that it was the first thing people saw when they passed through the gates, and obviously the saloon's owner saw everybody who made it this far as a potential customer and a source of caps. Discretion didn't come into it.

But then again Colin Moriarty wasn't known for being the most _discreet _of men.

If anything, he was kind of infamous around the wasteland for being a cheating, pimping whoremonger who only saw people in terms of business opportunites for what he could screw them out of.

Oh yeah, a real charmer that one.

A real Irish charmer...

Down below, the huge atom bomb that had given Megaton its name, was still sticking up out of the ground like a reminder of everything that had gone wrong with the world, even though it had long since been disarmed. Rather alarmingly, there seemed to be some signs of recent battle damage on its shell, but for all that it looked much as it ever did. Big, ugly and just obstinately still here…just like the rest of the town.

To the left, a little dirt track wound its way up to a corrugated steel shack. On closer inspection it became apparent that the shack also seemed to have been damaged in an attack, with the front door all but rusted up around a hastily repaired lock which was jammed tighter than a mole-rat's ass.

Apparently no one had been home in a long time.

It took a lot of force to break off the rusted lock, and even more effort to shoulder the fucking thing open, but eventually persistence paid off and the darkness beyond beckoned with unexpected familiarity and a curiously welcome feeling of 'home'.

The lights didn't work, but it was probably because there was currently no power. Not much point wasting precious energy on an empty house. Fortunately there was just enough of the rapidly disappearing daylight left to make out an oil lamp on the bookcase by the stairs.

A quick search of a nearby open locker revealed a half empty box of matches, but it was more than enough to light the thing and soon the dark shapes of the interior were bathed in a warm, yellow glow that highlighted the recent signs of forced entry, cutting a tell-tale path through the build-up of dirt that had accumulated over the past year or so.

A cursory sweep of the room was enough to reveal that whatever happened here was over and done with, although the bullet holes in the Mr Handy robot that lay crumpled in a heap at the bottom of the stairs was a bit of a worry.

Therefore, it was pleasantly surprising to find that the batteries for the thing were undamaged and had held their charge, though it took about ten minutes of tinkering, swearing and downright pleading before the robo-butler rose into the air on a cushion of super-heated air.

"I say, what are you men doing in here? Madame is out of town and I must insist you leave…Oh, it's you! Good evening Madame, it is so very good to see you again. Shall I prepare a meal for…" Wadsworth froze mid-sentence as his ocular light fell upon the dusty, damaged couch. "Oh my! What philistines! Just look at the mess they have made! You know Madame, if you are going to leave again anytime soon, then you really should ensure your house-guests treat your residence with respect. Really, don't they know that this kind of dirt is beastly to clean if it's left to build up like this? Too busy threatening the other residents I expect…"

"I'm sorry, Wadsworth." It felt good to say his name. "I had house-guests?"

"The Enclave troops, Madame. From the way they behaved, I thought you had invited them…though apparently not." The robo-butler hovered past and began to busy itself about the room. "I'm sorry Madame. It's just that with you just upping and leaving like that without ensuring proper procedures were in place, I was a tad confused and this has resulted in the house looking terribly neglected. I mean just look at this upholstery and…is that fresh rust around the light fitting? Well I never… "

As Wadsworth's constant stream of complaints dwindled to a string of irritated mutterings, the Lone Wanderer felt a lump rising to her throat as emotions that had been held in check for so long, began to build deep inside her.

"Wadsworth…" She whispered, the raw feelings adding roughness to her voice.

"Yes Madame?" He paused and dimmed his light as he spun around to face her.

"I've missed you."

For a moment the Mister Handy simply hung in the air, but then it was as if he cleared his non-existant throat with a rasping metallic cough. "Ahem…yes, well…very good. I have missed you too, Madame. I'm glad that you're finally home."

It might have been her imagination, but she was sure that Wadsworth seemed a little embarrassed as he hovered into the kitchen then…

"Oh wonderful, there's no blasted power and what is that smell…oh I say. I think Madame may need to dine out tonight. I need to power blast the refrigerator."

…or maybe he was just on a mission to get the place clean.

Either way, it was good to hear his voice and despite everything that had happened Shelley, the Lone Wanderer, was finally back in Megaton and this time she was here to stay.

* * *

Goddamn Enclave bastards!

Shelley scowled as a careful check of her damaged weapons locker revealed that they had taken most of the stuff that she had left behind. The minigun was gone, as were her two backup assault rifles and spare pistols, not to mention the stack of grenades she had so carefully managed to accumulate during the early days of her wasteland journey. Of course, they had taken all the energy weapons, working or not, but it wasn't like she used them much so she figured could live without them.

Typical fucking Enclave though, they'd missed the real prizes…

The furthest locker from the door stood as empty and as open as the others, but a closer inspection revealed that the bottom sounded a little more hollow than it should. Using her combat blade to lift the additional metal sheeting, Shelley pushed aside the innocent looking metal to reveal a large hole cut into the rock beneath her shack. She couldn't help but grin as there inside, she spotted the dull red casing of a mini-nuke and the Fat-Man launcher that she had decided against carrying all over the Wasteland. Keeping it company was a gatling laser and a rock-it launcher, along with another three assault rifles, a couple of sniper rifles and a few more weapons that she stowed away for safe keeping.

After all, it was one of the first thing's she'd learned when she left the vault.

Always be prepared for anything…

Figuring the Enclave wouldn't be back well…ever, Shelley began unpacking her duffle and stowed her remaining weapons, along with the ones she'd been carrying, into the damaged lockers. Tomorrow, she would call into the Craterside supply to pick up some new locks, along with one for her front door, but it wasn't like anyone had seen her arrive and even then, no one was going to be able to sneak in with Wadsworth hovering about the place.

After she was done, Shelley made her way up to her bedroom. Oddly enough, everything seemed to be as she left it, with the bed still neatly made and her regular clothes hanging in the closet, covered in the same grimy dust that seemed to have permeated every inch of the house.

The sealed drawers in the cabinet by her bed were another story though. They too had been forced open and cleared out of meds, chems and anti-radiation supplies, but at least they had left her underwear behind.

Guess the Enclave wasn't too interested in ladies small-clothes…

With a sigh Shelley emptied her duffle of the remaining contents, mainly random bits and pieces that she'd brought home from her travels and couldn't bear to part with. A few of them stirred up painful memories and she frowned as she reluctantly pushed them aside. It wasn't that she couldn't face with those things, it was just that she didn't have time to deal with that.

Although important, they were now firmly in the past and right now it was the future that concerned her most.

Shrugging off the battered leather duster she wore over her mismatched armour, Shelley wandered into the bathroom to find that Wadsworth had helpfully filled up the basin with as much lukewarm water as he could produce. It wasn't exactly overflowing, but it was enough to clean off the dirt from her face and cleanse the stench of sweat from her body.

And that's when it had happened…

After peeling off her clothes, she caught sight of herself in the broken bathroom mirror and for a moment, she didn't even recognise herself. That person, the one looking back at her in stunned silence can't have been the same person that had left for Rivet City over a year ago…could it?

Back then, Shelley remembered seeing a softly rounded face with pale skin, bright eyes and a cascade of long, black hair that fell down past her shoulders.

This person who was now studying her intently, had skin that had been bronzed by almost constant exposure to the sun, and had the lean hard look of a seasoned wastelander. There were now dark smudges underneath her troubled, grey eyes and as for that long black hair, the hair she used to insist on brushing to keep it looking silky smooth, well frankly she couldn't remember the last time she had loosened from the matted braid she habitually wore to keep it out of the way.

This person was no naïve vaultie who happened to be good with a gun.

This person was a survivor…a warrior…and to some, this person was a fucking hero.

But looking at that face in the mirror Shelley couldn't help to wonder to herself, was it _really_ still her?

Fuck.

It had to be, for more reasons than she cared to acknowledge.

Soaking a ragged washcloth, Shelley wiped it over her face and closed her eyes. She breathed in deeply as she tried to calm the workings of her mind let her tensions run off with the now, cold water. Actually, it was kind of nice just feeling the wetness against her skin, and she was pleasantly reminded of the last time she'd had to bathe.

It had been, back in the Citadel before the last offensive against the Enclave. Elder Lyons had let her use the shower room there and she'd been surprised to find they had hot running water, relatively new bars of soap and even shampoo! Okay the shampoo had been that god-awful lice-control stuff, but at least it had gotten her hair clean.

Charon had joined her that day, the tall ghoul tentatively stepping into the spray as if he was afraid it was going to flay the remaining skin from his necrotised flesh, but soon even he had relaxed a little and if she didn't know any better, she would have sworn he was starting to enjoy it.

That's when she realised that things were starting to get a little…complicated.

Ever since she'd bought his contract from that slimy prick Ahzrukhal back in Underworld, Charon had been her constant companion. His sheer size, physical strength and unnerving calmness under pressure, all worked so well with her own particular talents that they made an instant connection and almost automatically knew what the other was thinking or doing. When she sniped at enemies from a distance, Charon was always there, protecting her with his shotgun in case they got too close. When she tried diplomacy and failed, Charon was usually able to help her intimidate people into doing what they needed. When either of them was injured, then the other would instantly step in to look after them until they were ready to move out again, and eventually when their relationship became more one of partners than employer and employee, he was there when she needed a friend.

He'd even been there for her when she lost James…when she lost her father.

No-one else had been there to see her crumble. No-one else had been there to hold her as she sobbed hysterically into the hard leather of Charon's armour, clutching at him as if he was the only lifeline she had. No-one else would ever know just how much it cost her to watch her beloved father surrendering his life for a dream of what could be, even at the expense of his own daughter's happiness.

No-one but Charon would ever hear her admit that she wished James hadn't done it, and that she'd give anything to see him again even if it meant the rest of the Wasteland went to hell.

And Charon…well, he'd never judged her or said a word, but just held onto her until she had cried it all out. His stoic yet all-encompassing friendship had become an increasing source of strength to her, and it made their partnership all the more solid.

It was only in the Citadel though, that she realised something about that arrangement had changed.

It wasn't like the ghoul hadn't seen parts of her naked before. Hell, he'd had to patch her up on more than one occasion and there was no time for modesty when you were bleeding out from a bullet wound, but back in that shower room she'd felt his milky eyes travelling over her body in a way that made her feel a little uncomfortable.

In truth, she'd also felt more than a little stupid too.

For all they had been through, for all the battles they had fought together, Shelley realised that she'd never once stopped to think that ghoul or no, Charon was also still very much a man. They had spent over a year together, with little or no privacy…damn, she should have seen it coming. The look on his ruined face…it had been partway between hidden desire and shameful regret.

Whether the regret was for the fact that she'd caught him staring at her, or that he didn't really want to feel _like that_ about her in the first place, or even that he knew there was someone else in the picture and nothing he said or did would ever change that…whatever Charon's reasons, the nature of his feelings had been revealed and it had changed the dynamic of their relationship.

What's more, there was no going back.

Still, Shelley was glad that despite the increasing awkwardness between them, they'd managed to stay together, _professionally speaking_, right up until the end.

From taking out the slavers at Paradise Falls, to fighting by her side when they'd followed Liberty Prime to the Jefferson Memorial to reclaim Project Purity, Charon had been there through it all. He even risked his own life to save hers when he activated her father's water purifier, protecting both Shelley and Paladin Lyons from the highly lethal levels of radiation within the central chamber.

But it didn't stop there.

Once he had recovered, Charon had willingly chosen to follow Shelley and the Brotherhood of Steel to Adams Air Force base when they launched their final assault on the Enclave mobile central command. The fighting had been tough, the remaining Enclave troops fighting with all the viciousness of cornered rabid dogs, but eventually what was left of them was in ruins and the Brotherhood could finally say that they now controlled the destiny of Capital Wasteland.

With the struggle over, Project Purity up and running, and the Potomac River rapidly becoming the best source of fresh water and more importantly, of hope to people and ghouls everywhere, Shelley was forced to acknowledge that it was time to go home.

At first, she wasn't so sure where home was anymore.

After spending so much time with the Brotherhood, she had considered formally joining up and spending her days either as a trainee doctor at the Citadel, or out on patrol clearing the DC ruins of the threat posed by roaming gangs of hostile mutants. There had also been the option to go north to Regulator HQ, to permanently offer her services as a lawbringer to Sonora Cruz, but the truth was she was just kidding herself.

Now it was all over, now that she really had a choice, the only place she really wanted to go was back to Megaton….

Back to Colin Moriarty.

Christ…the memories alone of their last night together had kept her warm on so many cold nights in the Wasteland but even then, they had also brought with them a hard ball of emotion that stuck in her throat and caused a painful ache deep in the core of her heart.

It had been so hard to leave him, harder than she could have ever imagined and it had hurt worse than the bullet wound to the stomach when she'd stolen away from his bed and stepped out into the wasteland not knowing if she'd ever see him again. God knows there had been times when she'd almost turned back, times when all she wanted to do was to taste his liquor breath and feel his body next to hers, but there was just so much at stake and so many people who were relying on her to do the right thing…

And Colin was the wrong thing in so many ways.

He was a belligerent Irish bastard with a dirty mouth and even dirtier attitude, and frankly his outlook on life was so fucking selfish that unless it was in the interest of Colin Moriarty, nothing else seemed to matter to him. He swore to much, drank too much, smoked too much, treated people like employees, employees like whores and whores like slaves but even after all that, there was just something about him that she couldn't stay away from. It was something that made her heart beat faster every time she was near him and something that made her want to close her eyes and ears against all the bad things that other people saw, and focus on the one thing that they shared that nobody could ever understand.

As fucked up as it was, he loved her.

Whatever face he wore when he was with the customers in the Saloon, whatever attitude he had with the people he dealt with in matters of business or profit, none of them had ever seen the Colin Moriarty who had held her close and taken her breath away with the passion of his kisses. They'd never seen the affectionate warmth in his otherwise cold blue eyes, or the way his face lit up when he smiled and actually meant it. They never knew just how gentle and tender he'd been after Jericho had raped her, desperately trying to soothe away the hurt and the pain and wanting so much to be the man he thought she needed, when all along she just needed him to be the man that he was…

The man she loved.

Charon didn't get it of course. In all honesty, how could she expect him to? The ghoul had only ever treated her with patience and respect, whereas her relationship with Colin had been tempestuously volatile at best. Still, she'd always hoped that maybe one day he would understand, even if he didn't like it very much.

On the way back from the Citadel, they had called in to Underworld to trade in some of the more valuable items they had acquired on their travels for food, meds and other supplies that would help them cross the wasteland. While she talked business with Doc Church, Carol and Greta, Charon had gone ahead into the Ninth Circle saying that he wanted some time to himself and that she should come join him for a drink after she was done. The trading went well and Shelley was feeling pretty good when she finally made it into the bar, but there was something about the way Charon looked at her when she pulled up a chair that made her feel more nervous being around him than she had in a long time.

She knew what he was going to say. She'd known it since that awkward moment back at the Citadel. This was the conversation that up to this point they hadn't wanted to have, but now it hung over them both like a summer rad-storm and the clouds were about to break.

At first, she had just sat and listened as he pointed out what an asshole he thought Moriarty was and that a girl like her could do so much better. She had tried not to flinch when he said that she deserved someone who would look after her, and considering all the things she had been through in Megaton, she could hardly say that about 'that piss-poor excuse for a bartender'. Then he'd told her that he cared about her, probably a lot more than he should, but he was sick of ignoring it and it was time to be honest with her.

They had something together too, didn't they? They were partners, friends…maybe more? After a year spent looking out for each other, could it be that there was more between them then either of them would care to admit?

She'd never wanted to hurt him, but there was only one thing she could say.

"_I'm sorry Charon, but I love Colin, always have. You know that."_

He hadn't looked surprised. He'd simply nodded and resignedly accepted her statement like she knew he would, but then he'd dropped the real bombshell of the evening.

Once he'd seen her safely to Megaton, Charon was leaving.

Willow had been in to see him while he was waiting for Shelley. Turned out she had a message for him from Roy Phillips in Tenpenny Towers. The ex-cop had offered Charon a job as part of his new security force, protecting the ghoulish residents of the luxury high-rise from anybody stupid enough to try and reclaim the place from its new occuopants. The job came with free room and board on top of regular monthly pay packet and it seemed like a pretty good deal…and since Shelley would be settling down in Megaton with her bartender…

Of course, she'd just smiled through her shock and offered Charon her stunned but sincere congratulations. Tenpenny Towers was a nice place to live, the other ghouls they had met seemed like a nice bunch, actually she'd heard Willow talking about moving out there herself blah, blah, blah.

The ensuing small talk about plans for the future had continued into the night, but in truth it couldn't really mask the fact that neither of them really wanted to say goodbye, but unfortunately for different reasons.

Shelley was forced to admit to herself that she really hadn't seen that one coming, but with hindsight it was probably for the best. If Charon had come back with her, and if things did work out with Colin, then she was pretty sure there would have been no end of problems. Moriarty wasn't the most tolerant of people, and his attitude toward ghouls in general was nothing if not downright fucking awful. That, combined with his jealous mean streak and Charon's already apparent disdain for the man, would have been a disaster waiting to happen and if Colin had found out that the ghoul who had come back from the wasteland with his little girl had expressed an interest in lot more than just being her protector…

Yeah. It really was better this way.

At least that had been what she tried to console herself with when the time came to part ways with the ghoul, but nothing could have prepared her for the heart wrenching loss of watching Charon walking away without her.

It had been like losing a part of her soul…

"Madame?" Wadsworth's jets flared as he drifted up the stairs and Shelley rinsed out her washcloth as he floated into view. "Madame, excuse me for interrupting but will you be requiring anything else this evening?"

"No, thank you." She answered, throwing her dirty laundry into the corner. "I'm just going to grab some fresh clothes and then I'm headed back out."

"Surely not to the wasteland, Madame?"

"Actually I'm headed for Moriarty's. I think I may have already been away too long."

"Ah. I see." She couldn't be sure, but she could have sworn there was a note of disapproval in Wadsworth's synthetic voice. "Well, do be careful Madame. Before I was deactivated, I heard that the place was getting a little bit out of hand. Why Mr Moriarty allows that kind of behaviour in his establishment in the first place, I really don't know…"

Shelley watched as the old robo-butler hovered back down the stairs and began vacuuming the couch. For the first time in her life, she really envied the thing being a robot. It was all so easy for him just to slip back into routine and to carry on as if nothing had happened.

She doubted very much that was going to happen with her and Colin…

Ducking into her bedroom, she opened up her drawers and pulled out the good underwear she'd tucked away before she left. Sure, she'd lost a few of her curves, but she still went in and out where it counted and the bra and panties lifted and squeezed her in all the right places. Next she selected the least grimy outfit she could find from her closet. The khaki slacks were now a little big around the waist and the tightly fitting vest hung a little loose, but it was a damn sight better than showing up in her battered leather armour.

The next problem to tackle was her hair. It had been in the braid for so long, that it stubbornly refused to untangle itself no matter how much she tried to drag a brush through it. Eventually she gave up and grabbed a pair of scissors from the dresser. They were blunt and rusted, but after five minutes of relentless cutting, Shelley eventually she managed to hack through the top of the stiff braid and toss into the trashcan by the bed. Her arms ached by the time she'd managed to untangle what was left and once she had managed to brush out most of the grime and dirt, it didn't look too bad hanging just past her jawline in black waves.

Breathing in deeply, Shelley looked at herself in the mirror and for the second time that night, and finally recognised the face staring back at her.

She could only hope that Colin Moriarty could see it too.

* * *

The first thing Shelley noticed when she stepped outside was that it had gotten a lot darker and also a little cooler. The air had begun to feel a little heavy, like a storm was coming, and she instinctively pulled up the collar on her leather duster as she walked across the steel gantry toward the saloon.

She kept close to the wall, stealthily using the dark shadows to hide her progress. It wasn't that she was trying to avoid people. It just would make things awkward if Colin found out she was here from someone else before she'd had the chance to talk to him.

Up ahead, beside the Common House, she could see Billy Creel's place…another friend she'd almost lost because of Colin. Funny, she'd tried not to think about him back in the Wasteland because it just reminded her of how much she missed him. The former caravan guard had been one of the few people in Megaton she'd allowed to really get to know her and just like Charon, he'd always been there for her when she needed a friend. Sure he was another guy who got too close and maybe that was her fault for not seeing it sooner, but they'd managed to work it out despite everything and now that she was here, she wanted to see him again so badly, but it would have to wait.

There were more important things to do right now.

Apparently it was a busy night in Moriarty's. As she neared the saloon, Shelley could hear laughing and shouting above the din of loud music and clanking bottles. She stopped for a moment, leaning against the corrugated steel wall as she listened to the once familiar sounds of people having a good time and closed her eyes as she sought to pick out certain voices amongst the din of the crowd. Sure enough, she could just make out Gob's rasping cries for attention as he served up a round of beers. Another few minutes and she could hear Nova's name being called, no doubt by an eager john keen to see what pleasures his money had bought him, and above it all she could hear Moira Brown's shrill laugh, cutting through the raucous hubub like a diamond cuts through glass.

At that moment, she would have given anything just to be part of that crowd as she had been when she first settled in Megaton. Back then she was just Shelley the vaultie, not Shelley the freaking Hero of the Wasteland sent to right wrongs and fight injustice. Oh yeah, that had put her right back on the outside again. Then again, she knew it would take time to be able integrate back into town life and for the people around her to realise that she had left the _hero_ part of herself behind, but she was here to stay and…

BANG!

Behind her, the door of the common house suddenly burst open and Shelley instinctively withdrew into the shadows, her hand flying to the 10mm pistol at her hip as she prepared to face the threat.

She needn't have bothered.

Laughing and joking, a bunch of thirsty caravanners hurried past her, jostling one another as they rushed toward the saloon. Jesus…it may have been one of their better decisions to stay overnight in town rather than risk travelling in the dark, but Shelley had a feeling they were probably about to lose all their hard-earned caps once they stepped foot inside Moriarty's. If the idea of spending an hour or two with Nova couldn't tempt them to part with their currency, then Colin's Irish charm would no doubt kick in and they'd soon find that all their profits had been downed along with a bottle of the Irishman's finest...

She couldn't help but smile as she watched them trading macho-shit insults about who was going to drink who under the table, and which one of them would give the local hooker a night that she'd never forget. They acted like they were the first men to set foot in the place, like no one had ever heard the shitty jokes they were telling before now and how these locals were going to remember them for the rest of their lives, but it actually felt good to see guys with nothing to worry about apart from who was going to get laid first and who was going to get the drinks in.

It certainly made a change from spending time in the company of men and women whose main concern was how to survive another day before they were overrun by the enemy. In the Wasteland, you drop your guard down for just one second and you were dead. A careless laugh could give away your position as easily as waving a red fucking flag…

But she wasn't in the Wasteland now.

She was home, in Megaton.

Shit, she had to stop thinking like this.

Safely securing her pistol, Shelley closed her eyes, took a few deep shuddering breaths and forced herself to calm down. Her heart was pounding against her breastbone like it was an angry mirelurk, and her hands were shaking as if she'd just huffed jet, only it wasn't the boisterous revellers that had gotten her so rattled. It wasn't even the memories of surving the Capital Wasteland.

It was the sounds that came streaming through the open door, the familiar smells that suddenly assaulted her senses, and the thought of actually walking into that saloon knowing that she'd be coming face to face with Colin Moriarty.

Jesus fucking Christ.

Had she really done the right thing by leaving him while he was sleeping all that time ago?

Would he ever understand that it had been the hardest decision she'd ever had to make?

Did he realise how much she still loved him?

"Fuck."

Shelley muttered under her breath as a bitter tear rolled down her cheek. Now was not the time to loose it, and she angrily wiped at her face with the back of her hand. There would be plenty of time for pain and regret later, once she had explained herself...once she had seen him…

A cold, sickening feeling twisted her insides as she was suddenly aware that she was being watched. She could feel cold, angry eyes boring into her soul as staggered shock turned into reluctant comprehension, and the sharp intake of breath that followed that penetrating stare was as familiar to Shelley as the Irish lilt in the voice she heard cutting through the cool night air like a knife to her gut.

"Well, well, well. Look who's come crawlin' back to my saloon…"

She raised her head, slowly at first, as if afraid to look into the piercing blue-eyes of the man who was now stood before her, a cigarette half-way to his lips and a sardonic smile on his tobacco-stained lips.

With all the strength she could muster, Shelley moved out of the shadows and stepped into the yellow light so that he could see her fully, and felt a glimmer of hope as his face softened slightly and hands began to tremble. Her throat felt as dry as the desert and her eyes were misting as she opened her mouth to speak the words she had wanted to say for so long…

"Hello Colin."


	2. The Irishman

THE IRISHMAN

"_Hello Colin_."

Jesus…after all this time, was he seeing alright?

Was it really Shelley herself that was standing before him?

She looked thinner sure enough, though fuck knows a year spent scrabbling around in the rad-soaked DC ruins can't have done her any good. Her hair was shorter now and her cheekbones were more prominent than he remembered but there was no mistaking those eyes. Those deep, grey, beautiful eyes that had trapped him into caring about her more than he'd ever intended. No-one had ever gotten under his skin like the little vault girl. No-one had ever made him feel so fucking vulnerable until she came along.

And be damned if he was gonna let her see just how shaken he was at seeing her there.

Focusing his gaze on the cigarette he'd pulled from the packet in the sleeve of his tee, Moriarty nonchalantly struck a match against the balcony railing and breathed in deeply as the naked flame ignited the cheap, dry tobacco. Bitter smoke rolled over his tongue and curled into his lungs as he inhaled, but the familiar sensation brought with it a sense of calm that stilled the nervous tremble in his hands. With any luck he could blame it on the shakes anyway…

Damn.

He could feel her watching him with that look on her face. That fucking gut-wrenching look that seemed to rob him of all sense when it came to dealing with the lass and if he dropped his guard now, even for just one second, he knew he'd be throwing his arms around her and pleading for her to stay at the expense of what little pride he had left.

Fuck that. He'd given up too much already.

"Hello Colin eh?" Exhaling slowly, Moriarty raised his head and met her anxious gaze through a cloud of blue smoke. "Little Girl, it's been a year since we last spoke and that's really all you have to say t'me?""

"I…I…" Shelley hesitantly reached out toward him, but a cold sneer held her in check and she shrank back looking somewhat hurt and confused.

Moriarty snorted as a brief flash of sympathy threatened to rob him of his control, and he sought to distract himself from the overwhelming urge to hold her by distractedly flicking ash from the tip of his cigarette and watching the dying embers drifting toward the steel walkway beneath his feet.

Shelley didn't move, didn't even say a word but just stood there looking like she was expecting something. It angered him for some reason. Who the hell did she think she was? She ran out on _him_ for fuck's sake. She should have been apologising, on her fucking knees if necessary…he would have been.

"What's the matter, little girl? Cat got your tongue?" He tried to keep his voice calm so as not to betray the turmoil he felt inside. "Jesus lass, sure'n you've come all this way…"

"Colin…" Her voice cracked and her hard, grey eyes were full of tears. "I…I've come back."

"That's pretty fuckin' obvious." He snapped back, his temper coiling inside his gut like a bad meal on its way out. "So what _are_ you here for? You lookin' for a good drink after a hard day's travellin'? Thinkin' of havin' a party in the saloon t'celebrate your grand return? Or maybe you just fancy a fuck, y'know for old times' sake."

"Colin, why are you being like this?" The pain in her voice was almost more than he could bear. "I didn't come here to fight. I came back for you, just like I said I would…"

"Oh that's grand, that is." He sneered at himself for the way his body reacted to her words, his heart leaping pathetically in his chest and suddenly feeling weak at the knees. "So let me get this straight, you run off into the Wasteland without so much as a fuckin' word and leave me with nothin' but a bloody note sayin' you might be back. You stay away for the best part of a year without lettin' me know if'n you're even still alive and then, _then_ I hear from that fuckin' prick DJ on the radio that you've upped and joined the Brotherhood o' Steel and gone on some damn crusade!" He took a step forward, trusting to the adrenaline coursing through his veins to keep him on his feet. "And now you've come back just like you've been out for a stroll and expect me to be…to be…to be what exactly?"

"Please…"

"Do you want me to be grateful?"

"Stop."

"Do you want me to be happy?"

"Stop it."

"Don't get me wrong, I'm glad t' see you're alive and well, but next you'll be tellin' me you expected me t'be jumpin' for joy that you've finally decided to grace me with your presence!"

"Colin, for fuck's sake!" Exasperation added unwanted volume to Shelley's voice and she coloured as she struggled to bring herself under control. "Look, this was obviously a mistake. I…I don't know why I bothered."

Moriarty stared incredulously as Shelley began to stride away.

"Hey!" Moriarty called after her, involuntarily lunging forward. "I thought you had somethin' t'say to me? Shelley, don't you dare turn your back on me, lass! Shelly, would you just slow down!"

Too late, he realised his mistake of grabbing her by the arm as she lashed out with her fist, knocking him sprawling to the ground.

"Don't touch me!" She snarled, yanking back her hand in readiness for a second blow. "Don't ever fucking put your hands on me like that again! You have no right!"

"Oh is that how it is now?" Moriarty bit back, his knee throbbing painfully as he tried to get to his feet. "Things don't go the way you were expectin' so it's my fault right enough?" Pain shot through his leg as he braced himself against the side wall of the saloon, but it was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. "I thought we had somethin' Shelley! I thought I meant somethin' to you! But you left it behind when you walked outta me saloon without so much as a backward glance. Seriously, did you really think I was gonna just wait for you like a brainless fuckin' dog or somethin'? A man has feelin's too you know, a man has needs…"

"Needs?" She scoffed, her lip curling with disgust. "Oh I see. This isn't about you giving a shit, this is about your fucking prick! That why you run whores, Colin? So they can see to your needs?"

"They do their job alright." He growled, anger and guilt turning his face an ugly shade of red. "At least they're usually there in the mornin' when I wake up."

"Oh? I'm curious, do you pay them by the hour or by the night for that privilege?"

Moriarty grimaced as he finally made it to his feet. "Pay, no. It's a perk of the job lass, for them anyway. What can I say? You know what that's like…least I never heard you complainin' anyway."

"Didn't have anything to judge it by back then. Maybe I know better now."

Her words struck him like a face full of plasma.

"I'll bet you do, lass." He muttered, painfully reminded of that fact that she'd spent the last few months at least being surrounded by dozens of young paladins, all warriors like her and with much more to offer the girl than an aged saloonkeeper in a town on the arse-end of civilisation. "I imagine it can't have been too lonely for you with those _eager young men_ in their shinin' armour lookin' to shove their dicks into the first willing pussy that walked through the doors of the Citadel…"

"I had my share of offers." She retorted, running her hand through her cropped black hair. "Come on Colin, you must remember what it's like. You were my age once!"

Flashing him a dirty look she started to walk away again, following the track behind the common Billy Creel's house, obviously keen to avoid attention.

Hell no. She wasn't getting' away so easily…

"So tell me, did you ever think o' me while you were fuckin' them, or was it Jericho's face you saw while they drilled into you?" Anger drove the words out of his mouth before his brain had the good sense to intervene.

Shelley flinched as if he'd just struck her hard across the face, and turned as white as a corpse. "Colin…you really are a cunt do you know that?"

"So they tell me, lass…so they tell me."

Moriarty shuddered as he suddenly felt afraid.

For all they had been through in the past and all that she had suffered at the hands of the old raider who had raped her in the very house she lived in, _the old raider Moriarty had beaten to within an inch of his life and left for dead outside the town walls_, he had never seen her look at him the way she was looking at him now.

She had always been a passionate girl and god knows she'd never bothered to hide her feelings from him, but what he saw now in the depths of her steely gaze made his bowels loosen and his throat tighten with nervous regret.

He'd never seen hate and disappointment in her eyes before, and it chilled him to the core.

"Look…" He breathed, guilt and desperation clawing at his heart and pushing him toward her. "I never meant t' say that. It's just that…well, you have t' see things from my perspective."

"From your perspective?" She stared at him incredulously and swatted away his outstretched hand. "Are you fucking serious? I could have just stayed away Colin! I could have just stayed at the Citadel, or set up home back at Rivet City where I have friends, but no. I decided to come back here, back to you just like I said I would, and what do I find? You've already moved on…"

"I will point out that it was you that left me!" He snarled, throwing himself forward and pressing her back against the outer walls of the town. "And I suppose you think you're innocent in all this, huh? Well guess again, darlin'. It was me that had to listen to you belly-achin' about bein' deserted by dear old James and then what do you do? You go runnin' off into the night just like he did, leavin' me with nothin' but a piece o'paper and an empty bed…"

"Don't you ever listen?" Shelley spat, the short, sharp nails on her fingers digging into his wrists as he held her in place. "I told you before! Take your fucking hands off me!"

"Jesus…Is this how your family deals with everythin'?" Moriarty challenged, unwilling to release her and yet unnerved by the effect her closeness was having on his resolve. "You just up and leave when things don't go your way? Always runnin' away from your problems! Always runnin' from one disaster to another on some damn fuckin' crusade and lookin' to die a martyr just like your dear old Da, …'cept you fucked that up by survivin' through it all, didn't you?"

With an anguished cry, she broke free form his hold and he staggered back, once more reaching for the cigarette pack that he kept in his sleeve. Fucking thing was empty and the growl of frustration that came from his lips, brought a petty sneer to Shelley's lips as he hurled it to the ground in a fit of pique.

"Could be a sign you should quit?" She snickered, rubbing at her wrists and watching him like a predator watches its prey. "Those things will kill you."

"No, that's your department, little girl." He bit back. "Tryin' t'get yourself killed so that dear old James can rest easy in the knowledge his darlin' daughter followed him into vaultie-heaven to finally become the great fuckin' Messiah that all of those other stupid bastards in the wasteland think you are! Problem is, from what I hear, you apparently got a fuckin' ghoul t' do your dirty work when the time came. Do you think your Da would be proud of you, knowin' that you had the brains to avoid certain death while he was too fuckin' stupid to see what was in front of him…"

This time he was ready for her, but the force with which she hit him punched straight through his defences and took him squarely on the jaw, more than enough to rock him back on his heels and spilt the skin of his lower lip.

"Don't you ever talk about my father like that!" She snarled, baring her teeth like a crazed animal. "Who the fuck do you think you are? From where I stand, you're nothing but a two-bit fucking bartender who's not even fit to speak his fucking name! My father _died_ so that I could live and carry out his dream to bring water to the wasteland! For some reason, he actually gave a shit enough to see that fucking assholes like you could keep on living in shit-holes like this, and you dare…_you_ _dare_ to throw that in my fucking face…!"

She was shaking like leaf, rattled to the core as the emotions she been trying to hide came bubbling to the surface in a grief stricken fury.

"Do you have any idea what it was like for me to watch him die? To watch his skin blister and his eyes burn as he vomited up the last of his life just so I could get away! You say I avoided death, well I've got news for you, old man! I would have died a hundred times over if I thought that could have saved him! He was my father, Colin! I loved him, don't you get it! I loved him, but I couldn't get him outta that fucking machine! I couldn't stop him from starting it and I couldn't get to him afterwards! Believe me, if it had meant he'd still be here now then I'd have said fuck the water purifier! Fuck the water purifier, fuck the wasteland, fuck the Enclave and the Brotherhood and fuck you Colin Moriarty! Fuck you all to hell and back! He was my dad, goddamn it! He was my dad and I lost him just like before…and now, now I'm losing you too…"

He wasn't certain when it happened, but at some point he had gathered her into his arms and held her tightly against his chest as she wept. It just seemed like the right thing to do and god knows, he wanted her to need him. He wanted her to know that he was the one she should have been with all along, and that he would never have let her down just like her self-righteous prick of a father did.

In fact, for all his selfish fucking anger and childish point scoring, the only thing Colin Moriarty had ever wanted with this amount of conviction was for the girl in his arms to know that he loved her just as much as he ever had.

But how in the hell was he supposed to tell her that now?

What the fuck was he goin' to do…

* * *

It was hard to say what hurt the most. The fact she'd come home to find that Colin was as cold as a nuclear winter, the bitter accusations that he'd thrown at her about fucking other guys, or his deliberately provocative comments about Jericho

Actually it wasn't any of that that had reduced her to tears.

The simple truth was the thing that hurt the most, the thing that had finally made her crumble under the weight emotional baggage she was carrying, was the thought that he could have been right about her reasons for leaving.

Had she really ran away from him, just like her father had run away from her? Was she so afraid of being cared about by somebody like Colin that it railed against her own sense of pride and independence? In all honesty, was the reason she had left Megaton without so much as a backward glance all about James and the water purifier, or was it the fear of settling down with a man, sharing his life and having his kids, therefore giving up all notions of ever leaving again.

Jesus, was that what was really behind the guilt and the pain she felt when she'd looked into Colin's cold blue eyes?

Had she _meant_ to hurt him that much…?

As she stood there, wrapped up in Colin's strong muscular arms, Shelley found herself unable to stop herself from weeping softly. It was as if she was grieving, not only for the loss of her father, but for the loss of a life she might have had if only she had chosen to stay. Desperately she sought security in his embrace, shuddering with every breath and clawing at his back as if she could rend the comfort from his body with her finger nails. At first, she hadn't even registered that he'd wrapped his own arms around her shoulders and pulled her in so tight that she could hear the rhythm of his heart beating inside his chest, but for the moment it was all she could do to endure the rawness of her pain, the shame of her guilt and the burning heat of Colin Moriarty as he whispered soothing words into her hair.

Problem was, his closeness was affecting more than she was prepared for.

Suddenly, every feeling she had seemed confused and out of place. Her rage, revulsion and disgust with the way he had treated her was quickly being consumed in the flames of her dormant desire for the Irishman, and there was something about the way their bodies were pressed together, hidden in the shadows, out of sight of the rest of the world, that felt so right. The intensity of her feelings were as strong as they had been when they first hooked up, and being able to hold him like that again was like something out of a dream.

Slowly, Shelley raised her head to confirm that it really wasn't a dream and found her face mere inches from his. Her thoughts became a jumbled mess of impulses as both her heart and her head sought to know something other than the desperate agony of her situation and almost unbidden, their lips met in the most hesitant of kisses.

It was a cool night, but the fire that burned within her at that moment was hotter than the furnaces of the Pitt, and she readily gave herself over to his taste, claiming his tongue as his attentions grew in intensity and his kisses became more demanding. All thoughts fled from her mind, to be replaced by lustful need and the most basic of human instincts.

God help her, but she wanted him.

He made no move to stop her as she shrugged off her duster, and she slid her hands beneath his tee, eagerly seeking to smother his bloodied lips with her own. The low moan that he breathed hungrily into her mouth, even as he responded to this unexpected turn of events with kisses so hard that she felt his cut lip opening even further with the force of it all, left no doubt that he wanted this as much as she did.

Whatever _his_ reasons for doing so…

Shaking like a new-born colt, Colin leaned heavily against her, his body weight propelling her back against the wall and holding her there as his hands began to travel over her body, cupping her breasts through the worn fabric of her vest, and squeezing the ample flesh with almost brutal desire.

Whimpering softly, Shelley reached down to unbuckle the belt that held up her slacks. She had no wish to engage in foreplay, as the urgency she felt to have him inside her had begun to dominate all of her conscious thought, and her fingers worked quickly as she tugged on her zipper, yanking it down in order to slide her pants down to her knees, along with the cotton panties she was wearing.

Colin responded to her boldness by working at his own fly, awkwardly tugging at the fastenings while trying to keep contact with the aggressive wetness of her desperate kisses and she heard him gasp in surprise as she grabbed one of his hands and thrust it between her legs. She knew she wasn't ready for him just yet, but she wanted to feel something, anything other than the emptiness that was threatening to rob her of all reason and she grimaced as she guided his fingers between her folds and pushed herself onto his dry, calloused digits.

For a second he pulled back, a mixture of surprise and lust adding colour to his otherwise ice-blue eyes, but then he snatched back his hand and urgently licked his fingers, slicking them with blood-flecked saliva before once more plunging them into her core, working her in tight little circles in preparation for his entry. Desperate to feel him inside her, Shelley helped him to liberate his large, jutting manhood from the confines of his pants and in turn, he grunted like an animal as she began to jerk the skin of his shaft back and forth over his tip. He was already harder than she had hoped and she almost cried out in alarm as he suddenly withdrew his fingers, spun her around and then pushed his ready cock past her buttocks toward the molten centre of her aching sex.

The fleeting pain she felt as he forcefully thrust himself into a body that wasn't quite ready for his girth was a welcome relief from the pain in her heart, and she yelped as he ground his hips against hers. After struggling to fill her with the entirety of his length, he pulled back slightly, allowing her fluids to seep around his width, easing the passage for both of them. This time, the glossy wetness of her arousal eased the friction of his entry and caused his shaft to slip deep inside her. Shelley cried out softly as she felt him filling her with his hardness, driving out the bitterness and regret that had consumed her since she left him sleeping soundly all that time ago.

Slowly and deliberately he claimed her, pressing himself against her back and nipping at her throat as he slid inside her. He was being tender, almost _affectionate_ and Shelley teared as she felt a fresh rush of shame beginning to burn in her cheeks.

As much as she wanted his love and needed it, she also needed to feel his anger.

He deserved his rage and she deserved his punishment…

"Come on, old man." She growled, pushing back against him as he entered her once more. "Is this all you got?"

"What…?" He mumbled drowsily. "What's that…?"

"You forget how to fuck while I was gone, or have you just gone soft?" She winced as she felt his fingers dig into her hips.

"Soft is it?" He hissed in her ear. "You should remember who you're talkin' to, little girl."

The sharp slap he gave her on the ass was in no way as painful as the swift stab of his iron-hard length into her aching core. Again and again he slammed into her, almost lifting her off her feet with his violent penetration, and she revelled in every moment as her body struggled to cope with his frenzied assault. There was no building orgasm, no loving caress and certainly no respite from the passionate rage of the angry Irishman as he fucked her with all the power of his fury and the masculine strength of his body.

Closing her eyes against his relentless rhythm, Shelley felt each and every thrust as an accusation against her soul…

Thrust…_Why did you do this to me?_

Thrust…_Why did you leave me?_

Thrust…_Do you still love me?_

Thrust…_Do you feel my pain?_

Thrust, thrust, thrust…

She was almost lost to the unbearable pleasure of his movements when she realised his rhythm had become erratic. He was struggling to keep himself buried within her as his legs threatened to buckle beneath him, and she felt his engorged head swelling with the promise of his release.

"Oh yes, Colin…" She panted, tears building in her eyes as he began nuzzling the tender skin at the base of her neck. "Yes Colin, let it happen. I love you…!"

"Oh fuck!" He snarled, his hands grabbing at her breasts and squeezing them as he fought to hold on to his climax. "Shelley…Shelley darlin', I can't hold on!"

Stifling his cries in her hair, Shelley felt her tears flowing as Colin reached his peak and erupted into her sore and aching sex. He grunted animalistically as each successive spurt was pumped into her shaking body, and he leaned against her, as exhausted physically as she was mentally. A thin film of sweat coated them both now, and their bodies were slicked against each other even through the fabric of their clothes, but it didn't matter. Just feeling him holding him in her arms as the tide of passion subsided was something she had missed for too long, and something she wanted to feel every day for the rest of her life.

"Colin…" She whispered, feeling his spent organ sliding from between her legs. "Colin, are you alright?"

"Damn…" He muttered as he pushed back from her and pulled himself from the wet heat of her body. "Shelley, I…shit, I thought I was fuckin' stronger than this."

There was something in his tone that wasn't right and Shelley cautiously turned around to see him angrily wiping off the end of his dick on his tee, before he shoved the softening organ back in his pants.

"Colin..."

"No, stop." He cut her off with a wave of his hand and didn't even look her in the eyes. "Jesus…I never meant for that t' happen…for this t' happen."

A cold fear gripped her by the throat and she felt shame beginning to creep over her, casting her skin a deep crimson red.

"Listen Shelley…" He began, stroking his beard and grimacing as if in pain. "I only wanted t' talk to you. To try and explain what it's been like bein' without you. I never meant t'…"

"To what?" She snapped, panic making her voice sound more shrill than usual. "To fuck me?" Her vision was blurred as she tried to hurriedly pull up her clothes. "I wanted this, Colin and I thought you wanted this too?"

"I do…I did, probably more n' that." He sighed heavily and his face softened with regret. "It's just that, I know where this leads and I can't do this. Not again."

Realisation hit her like the swipe of a deathclaw's talons and she stared open mouthed at the man before her, who in the past had always been so strong and in control but now appeared defeated and adrift.

"What are you saying?" She could barely hear herself speak over the loud drumming of her heart.

"What I'm sayin' is that I love you little girl, always have and still do but what you did t' me…" He swallowed hard and when he met her eyes, there was nothing but sadness in their pale glittering depths. "See, I never loved anyone before…fuck, I don't even think I cared as much about me own da as much as I care about you, but you still left! Even after everythin' you went through, everythin' we went through, you still left! And I had to pick up the pieces without you."

He rubbed his hand over his face and when he looked back at her, Shelley could see that his cheeks were wet.

"I can't put meself through that again little girl, no matter how much I might want to. I'm too old for games and uncertainties and I'm definitely too old t' be chasin' after you should you decide to go strikin' off into the wasteland on another damned crusade. I just can't do it anymore."

Shelley stared in silence as he walked forward and picked up her duster from where it had fallen in the dirt.

"This is who you are." He said, handing her the battered leather. "The Lone Wanderer, the Ranger of the Wastes. Me…I'm just a crooked saloonkeeper workin' the customers at the arse end of DC. You can do better than that."

"I don't want to _do better than that_!" She cried, snatching the coat from his hands and reaching out to stroke his bearded face. "I want you Colin! I've always wanted you! All the while I've been in the wasteland, there's been no-one else, no-one! I've spent nearly all my time just thinking of you, longing for you…and sometimes crying myself to sleep 'cos I knew that in the morning you wouldn't be there! And as for your little crack about the paladins, did you really think I could run off with one of those soldier boys and forget about you so quickly! I love you, Colin Moriarty! Do you understand that? I love you!"

"And I love you too, Shelley." He murmured, stepping in close placing a gentle kiss upon her trembling lips. "That's why I have to let you go…"

She wanted to protest even more, to make him understand that this was not how it was meant to be, but all Shelley could do was watch as he mounted the gantry that led back to the saloon. Briefly he was bathed in yellow light as somebody opened the door and for a split-second, he paused as if he was going to speak. But then he looked back, and the heartbroken expression he wore spoke more clearly than any words her could have said to her.

And once he disappeared back inside, Shelley found herself truly alone in the darkness.


	3. The Cold Light of Day

THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY

His one good eye felt sore this morning. It always did on days like this when the sun was particularly high in the sky despite the fact it was so damned early. Most of the other townsfolk were still in bed, sleeping off a long night of heavy drinking spent in Moriarty's Saloon, but Billy Creel didn't have the luxury of slow mornings and restful ease. The caravan was due in from Rivet City at any time and if he wasn't there to meet them at the gate, then Deputy Weld would probably turn them away again. Wasn't the old protectron's fault though, more like a glitch in his programming. Poor thing hadn't been right since he took a shot to the head off one of those Enclave assholes a few months back, but at least Moira had managed to keep him running, even if he did screw up a couple of times now and then.

Still, a glitched defence was better than no defence.

As he trudged up the path toward the gate, Billy gently rubbed away the ache and blinked wearily to clear his misted vision. He must have been more tired than he thought, because up ahead he swore he could see…

…he could see…

"_Shelley_…"

The name fell uncertainly from his lips as watched a familiar female figure walking over to Lucas Simms' place, and then he dismissed his observation as highly unlikely. Shelley had longer hair than this dolly, and even from this distance he could tell that she didn't have the vault-girl's curves, but wait a second…was it…nah, couldn't be her.

Shelley was long gone and working with the Brotherhood of Steel last he heard. This had to be some settler, newly arrived in town and just looking for somewhere to stay. No doubt it would be down to him again to explain about the rules about the Common House. No one stayed in Megaton for free and if you wanted a room, you had to pay the rent. Only good folks who could earn their keep were welcome here and those looking for a free ride, well they'd be shown the gate.

Billy sighed as he heard knocking. Oh man, the girl was actually banging on Simms' door. She obviously didn't know what she was doing or who she had to talk to around here, and he groaned as he steeled himself for the routine 'how d'ya do's.

Then he froze in his tracks as a voice he hadn't heard in over a year called out.

"_Sheriff Simms! Lucas! I got a message for you! You home?"_

Billy gasped as his heart began to pound and he scrambled the rest of the way up the path to stare open mouthed at the figure who turned to greet him as he crested the rim of the crater. When she finally faced him, there was no denying who it was that was stood there with a smile so big that it lit up her entire face.

"Oh my God, Shelley! It's you! It's really you!"

Her hair was shorter than it had been and from the way her clothes were hanging off her body, she'd seen more than her fair share of hard living, but as he gathered her up in his arms and looked into her cool grey eyes, he knew beyond any shadow of a doubt that this was the girl from 101 and _damn_ if it didn't feel just perfect to be hugging her once again and hearing her saying his name over and over and telling him how much she'd missed him.

They must have been doing that for five minutes or more before either of them made a move to speak!

"Billy!" She cried, with tears in her eyes that he hoped were joyful. "Billy, it feels like forever since I saw you!"

"It's been too long, dolly!" He replied, feeling his throat tighten with emotion. "It's been way too goddamn long. Just let me look at you!"

Pushing her to arm's length, he looked her up and down as if afraid she was going to disappear again and she smiled warmly in return.

"You're looking good, Billy Creel." She sighed happily, pushing her hand self-consciously through her hair. "You look…great even."

"So do you." Despite his attempts to remain calm and collected, Billy felt a blush creep across his cheeks and he shrugged awkwardly. "I mean, your hair's different and you…ah…have more colour in your skin now, but you're still as pretty as I remember. Jeez, that sounded lame, I'm sorry…"

"Don't' apologise." Shelley laughed and hugged him again. "Lame it may be, but if a girl can't appreciate a compliment now and then, there's something wrong!"

"Oh you know me." Billy stroked his moustache and offered her a silly grin. "Always looking to pay the ladies a compliment. Especially the pretty ones!"

"Uh-huh." Shelley raised an eyebrow and punched him playfully in the arm. "Any particular ladies lately?"

For the second time that morning, she made him blush. "Well, actually I got this thing now with Jenny Stahl…"

"Oh?" Shelley smiled mischievously as she began to walk around him. "And is this a _good_ thing, like um, a _seriously good_ thing?"

"Maybe…I think it could be." He tried to appear cool and failed in every possible way, ending up with a big goofy grin on his face. "We hooked up a while after you left and we kind of…clicked, you know?"

"About time!" Shelley chuckled. "I think a lot of us thought that you two would be good together. Seems the only person who never realised it was the one standing in front of me!"

"Hey, what can I say? So I'm not always quick on the uptake! I didn't even know about you and Moriarty until I saw him outside your place…" Billy could have kicked himself when he saw the look on her face. "Oh man, I'm sorry. Shute, I didn't even think! I guess you haven't had chance to tell him you're back yet..."

"He knows."

The raw pain in her expression made his stomach knot. "He _knows_? Then how come you're not…?"

"What…at the saloon?" Shelley's voice had become flat and toneless. "We sort of ran into each other late last night. We talked a little, shouted a lot and then Colin said he couldn't do it anymore and he left."

Billy shook his head and frowned. "I don't understand. Do what exactly?"

"Him and me, he said he couldn't do us." She snorted as she wiped at the corners of her eyes. "He bitched about it for a while, you know, like he does and then he said it was over. Worst part is, we fuc…that is, I fucked up and I think I made a terrible mistake."

"So you made a mistake. How bad could it be? What does it prove anyhow other than you're human?" He clasped her by the arms reassuringly. "C'mon dolly. The guy hasn't seen you in a year, and most of that he spent worrying about you, not that he'd ever admit it. Whatever happened last night, he's probably just uptight about seeing you again. You know what a total dick he can be."

"Oh, I know that alright." Shelley agreed, breathing in deeply. "I guess I just thought we were stronger than that, but it doesn't matter. It's done now. Apparently some things are best left in the past…where they belong."

Billy couldn't help but feel felt angry toward the guy as he watched Shelley's shoulders tremble while she fought to regain her composure. Who the hell did Moriarty think he was? Shelley was the best thing to have ever happened to the old bastard…

He had to say something.

"Listen, Shelley. Whatever you think is broke between you two, you gotta give it time. Things have happened you don't know about and hell, even I was surprised to see you standing here and I can only imagine that Moriarty…"

"Do you mind if stop talking about this?" Shelley asked, turning once more towards Simms' house and avoiding his gaze. "I really can't deal with it right now and besides, I just want to enjoy catching up with people who still give a shit. Speaking of catching up, do you know where the Sheriff is? I have a message for him and it's kind of important."

Billy had the good sense to recognise a change of subject when he heard it, but this was something else that wasn't going to be easy for her to hear right now and he sighed heavily. "Uh Shelley, the Sheriff doesn't live here anymore. Actually, before we go any further, there's something you should know. Listen dolly, I'm real sorry to tell you this, but Lucas Simms…"

He cleared his throat and then swallowed hard.

"Shelley, Lucas Simms is dead."

* * *

"Thanks."

Andy Stahl didn't even deserve that perfunctory word of gratitude for the way in which he dumped the plate of mole-rat steak and powdered eggs on the counter in front of her, but since Billy was now seeing his sister, Shelley wasn't about to cause a scene.

Beside her, the former caravan guard shifted uncomfortably in his seat as Andy flashed him a look and then slipped through the kitchen door of the Brass Lantern, no doubt to tell Jenny Stahl that she ought to get back out front as that little bitch from 101 was back in town and probably trying to steal away her new man.

Terrific.

Jealous girlfriends were only one rung up from horny deathclaws on Shelley's list of annoyances.

Then again, at least you could shoot a deathclaw in the face and not have to answer to its fucking brothers…

Offering her an apologetic smile, Billy gestured enthusiastically at the food.

"You should eat that while it's hot." He suggested, trying to inject some lightness into his weary tone. "You just spent the best part of the morning helping me out with the caravan driver, and wrangling a decent price outta those guys will take it out of anyone! Besides, you look like you haven't eaten too well lately…that is, I don't mean that you look bad or anything, you just look thinner…I mean, slimmer…I er…"

"Relax Billy." Shelley groaned, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "It's no surprise that there weren't that many restaurants in the Capital Wasteland, and running from place to place avoiding supermutants is probably the most effective form of exercise I know. Shit, even I can tell I've lost a few pounds but now I'm back, I got my best pal to buy me dinner again. It's all good from where I'm sitting!"

"Oh I see! You only want me for my caps, right?" Billy waved his fork at her and clutched at his heart. "Here I was pining away thinking you wanted me for my hot body and my stimulating conversation! I gotta tell you, my ego is so bruised right now it's practically black and blue!"

"Like you needed any help with your ego." Shelley laughed as she prodded him with her own cutlery. "You know you're a good looking guy with a pretty girlfriend, a decent job and some serious responsibilities. Seems like the people round here have finally realised what I knew all along."

"Oh yeah, and what's that?"

"That you're one of the good guys, Billy Creel. And this place would be a whole lot worse off without you."

"Cheers dolly. You're not so bad yourself." Billy's rich brown eye seemed to shine all the more brightly as he tucked into his steak, and Shelley took the opportunity to settle down and enjoy what had become a comfortable silence as they ate lunch together.

Attitude or no, Andy Stahl cooked up a fine meal and the powdered eggs were a particular treat, as finding them in the Wasteland was just like trying to find gold plated rocking-horse shit! As she hungrily devoured another forkful of the fluffy yellow substance, Shelley reflected on the fact that it was a forgotten luxury to be able just to sit and think without fear of anyone trying to sneak up on her and either attack or attempt to devour her…or in some cases, both at the same time. Still, every now and then she would catch herself being surprised that it wasn't Charon who was here sharing her meal, but then she would distract herself with looking around the town and noticing all the things she had missed from the night before.

Things that Billy had reluctantly explained to her earlier that day as they had sat together in the shade, drinking a couple of aqua pura's outside the city gates.

Things that with hindsight, she should have been prepared for…

* * *

Of course Shelley already knew that the Enclave had been poking around in Megaton. She'd realised as much after she freed Nathan Vargas from Raven Rock, but even then some of the things that Billy had told her made her feel sick to her stomach.

He'd told her that a few months back, a small squadron of Enclave troops had arrived in a vertibird and demanded immediate access to the town and its inhabitants. Simms had immediately challenged them, questioning their commanding officer's authority and demanding that he state the reason for what he called an unnecessary Enclave intrusion into the lives of law-abiding citizens.

The officer, an officious lieutenant called Johnson, had simply handed over a certified, governmental writ and told the Sheriff that they were on an official manhunt, authorised and fully sanctioned by President Eden himself. They had come to Megaton to search for a former resident…a female vault-dweller no less, whose recent actions had threatened the stability of the President's regime and the safety of citizens everywhere.

They had been looking for her…

Simms had never been the kind of man just to take anybody at their word, and the lawman had also known Shelley long enough not to want to give them any information that could be used against her. Still, he also wasn't a stupid man and he knew that if the Enclave had shown up, then they already knew that Shelley had been there and possibly had ties to the town.

Thinking on his feet, he had told them enough half-truths wrapped up in a couple of necessary lies to keep them happy.

He'd said that Shelley left Megaton nearly a year ago, just staying in the town long enough to get her bearings in the outside world after leaving the vault, and that she'd never really had anything much to do with the other residents aside from taking on a few jobs here and there to earn some caps. The lieutenant had listened without comment, but then he had asked about the house by the gate on the upper level, and Simms was forced to admit that she had rented it for a time. He'd said that she used it as a storehouse, filling it up with the shit she brought back from the wasteland whenever she bothered to show up, but like he'd said, she hadn't been back in long time.

Actually, he was thinking of leasing it to somebody else…

Johnson had nodded as if satisfied, but then he had ordered his men to take a look inside.

Simms quickly explained he didn't have the key with him at that moment, but the Enclave didn't care. They just shouldered the door open and disabled Wadsworth with a jolt from a shock baton, then systematically searched the place for anything they thought would help them. God knows, Johnson had seemed pretty pleased when his men came out carrying the contents of Shelley's weapons locker, but he had also been less than thrilled to find out that Simms' story about her not being back for some time was obviously true.

That's when he'd ordered Simms to give him the key to the armoury as he needed 'somewhere quiet and secure to question the townsfolk'.

Billy recalled that Simms had protested loudly and angrily at that, demanding that the rights of the individuals should be respected, and that if anybody knew anything then he would gladly assist the Enclave with their investigation by acting as an official liaison and speaking to them in their own homes. But Johnson wasn't there to win hearts and minds. He just wanted to find something…anything that would lead them to the location of the Ranger of the Wasteland so he could get back on his vertibird and fly out of what he called _this shithole in the middle of nowhere_.

With their power armour and superior firepower, the Enclave were too strong a force to meet head on and unfortunately, Simms was left with no choice. He could only watch with growing unease as the first resident was taken to the armoury for questioning.

Lucy West wasn't a stupid girl, and the pretty blonde had no love for the Enclave either. She had told Billy afterwards that those two things, coupled with the fact that she felt like she owed Shelley for helping her out with her brother back in Arefu, had been the main reasons that she had managed to stay calm and feign ignorance when Johnson had started asking her about the vault-dweller. It had been no mean feat with the Enclave officer breathing down her neck, but she had said she didn't really know Shelley or care what she was doing right now. Johnson had been pretty insistent, but Lucy had stuck to her story and was released unharmed after only twenty minutes of questioning.

A visit to the Craterside Supply had followed, and they took in Moira Brown next. Ever the hopeful opportunist, apparently she had told Johnson that she hadn't seen Shelley since she finished off some research work for her book, which was available for sale at a discounted price if Johnson wanted to purchase some copies for his men. Johnson had asked about her history with the store owner, and Moira had then spent an hour going over and over the various items she had traded with the vault-dweller, even offering to show him some of the finer things she had brought back from the wasteland. After another half-hour had passed, Johnson had eventually given up on getting anything useful out of Moira Brown, although he had found himself several caps lighter after buying several copies of 'The Wasteland Survival Guide.'

Whether he thought it would give his men an insight into the mind of the woman they were looking for, or Moira really was just a great salesperson, Billy wasn't sure.

Next they had called on Andy Stahl. He was gone for so long that Simms had contemplated busting him out, but then Johnson had suddenly released the young restaurant owner and though Andy had been real pale and pretty shook up as he went back to the Brass Lantern, thankfully he had been otherwise unhurt.

It was about then that things had looked like they were going to get complicated.

Billy and Simms had watched with alarm as Johnson had sent two of his men over to the saloon.

They were going for Colin Moriarty.

Of all the people in the town, the Irishman was the one that Simms had figured he didn't have to be too concerned about. The guy was all smiles as he was led into the armoury to begin his interrogation, and Simms had said that if anyone could bullshit Johnson and his men, then it would definitely be Moriarty. He was hardly likely to give away any information that would have cost him more than he was prepared to pay, and since admitting being Shelley's former lover would probably mean getting his ass hauled along to Raven Rock, Simms had guessed that the saloonkeeper would know to just play the game and keep his mouth shut.

A day later, he hadn't been so certain.

They had kept the saloonkeeper locked away all day, and even overnight. Every now and then, there had been muffled cries that came out of the place and despite the lateness of the hour, Simms had been pacing up and down outside like a frustrated animal.

By then, he had become so anxious about what they were doing to the Irishman, that he'd appraoched Billy, Stockholm, Moira and a few other members of the town militia to ask if they would be prepared to fight the Enclave if it came down to it.

But thank god things never got that far.

The following sunrise, a full two days after Moriarty had been taken in for questioning, one of the Enclave troops stationed by the town gate had gone rushing into the armoury after receiving a message from the radio handler in the vertibird. Johnson had emerged seconds later, and had ordered his men to be ready to pack up and leave with immediate effect.

Simms had asked what the issue was, and if that meant they had found the person they were looking for, but all Johnson would say was that there was a situation at the Jefferson Memorial.

Nothing for the concerned citizens of Megaton to worry about.

With the interrogations apparently at an end, Johnson had given Billy and Simms permission to enter the armoury and retrieve Moriarty. The Irishman had been kinda messed up with various cuts and bruises and an open bullet wound just above his left knee that needed treating, but despite all that, the saloonkeeper had simply grinned as they walked in, asking for a stiff drink and a cigarette before he would let them take him to the doctor. Even then, he insisted in limping into the clinic by himself, but only after he spat at Johnson's feet and said that if Gob had been skimming the takings while he was gone, then he would bill the Enclave for loss of earnings.

He hadn't lost his belligerence that was for sure.

The moment Moriarty was safely inside, Simms had turned on Johnson and accused the officer of using brutality and torture to try and extract information from people. He'd said that the Enclave had behaved no better than a bunch of wild raiders and if that was how President Eden was running things, then no wonder people were looking to a vault-girl and the Brotherhood of Steel to bring order to the wasteland!

Johnson had just regarded him coldly and said that his actions were an unfortunate but necessary means to an end, especially if it meant obtaining intelligence that could lead to the apprehension of an enemy of the state, and since Simms had seemed to resent the Enclave presence from the moment they arrived then perhaps it was because the lawman himself had something to hide?

Simms was about to retaliate, but Johnson cut him off with a wave of his hand and then shouted orders for his men to bring the prisoner along and secure him in the veritbird. Simms and Billy had both turned round expecting to see Moriarty being hauled out of the clinic, but their anger turned to shock when they saw two of the Enclave troopers dragging Nathan Vargas along behind then...

The old man had looked terrified and bewildered as they held him up before Johnson, and the fact that his wife Manya was crying out to them, pleading with the troopers not to take him and begging them to stop had only added to his confusion. He had just stared around blankly as Johnson cuffed his hands and didn't even struggle as he was loaded him into the vertibird.

At that, Manya had begun pounding ineffectively on Johnson's armoured back, her face a tortured mix of outrage and desperation as she beat the officer with her frail fists. Annoyed by the distraction, he had spun around and drawn his laspistol on the old lady, but Billy had pulled her back, pinned her arms by her side and pleaded for her to take it easy…told her that Simms would sort it all out.

That's when the Sheriff had put himself between Johnson and the vertibird, and levelled his rifle at the Enclave officer.

_You're not taking him._

They were the last words that Billy would ever hear Lucas Simms say.

Without so much as drawing a breath, Johnson had simply turned his pistol on the lawman and blown a hole clean through his chest.

For a second it had appeared as if time had stopped and Simms had just…stared, a look of genune surprise on his face as his rifle dropped from his fingers and he fell backward onto the ground, his chest an open mass of cauterised bone and muscle.

He was dead within a heartbeat.

Johnson hadn't even flinched, but simply walked calmly over to the body, kicked it with the toe of his boot and then loudly informed everyone that they were now leaving and taking their prisoner with them.

Anybody else looking to stop them would also be considered an enemy of the state and be shot on sight as a threat to the rightful Presidency of James Henry Eden.

Instinctively, Billy had reached for his gun, determined to shoot the smug expression off the Enclave officer's face, but Manya had stopped him. With her sad old eyes full of hopeless tears, she had begged him not to do anything stupid as Megaton had already lost a good man, and it couldn't afford to lose another.

Faced with her heartbroken plea for calm, Billy had backed down.

There had been one last act of defiance when Deputy Weld had accosted Johnson as he tried to leave. The old protectron had heard the commotion inside and had made his way toward the vertibird to arrest the Enclave troops for the attempted kidnap of Nathan Vargas, and the Lieutenant for the murder of Sheriff Lucas Simms.

Johnson had just laughed at the robot and then calmly shot it in the head, before leaving it twitching in a cloud of dust as the vertibird soared up into the sky.

He was gone, the troops were gone and they had taken Nathan with them.

It was over.

Of course, life had continued as it always did in the wasteland…no matter how hard it was.

After being treated by the Doc, Moriarty went back to the saloon and carried on as if nothing had happened, barely even acknowledging his interrogation in the armoury. Lucy, Andy and Moira had all talked about their experiences, sharing what little information they had and trying to piece together what the Enclave thought they knew and what, if anything could they have possibly said that might have led them back to Megaton in the future. Billy was left to pick up the pieces of Simms' life, taking on the role of senior lawman in town, trying to fill the shoes of someone he felt he could never live up to and struggling to cope with the fact that he'd seen a good friend gunned down in cold blood, in a place he always thought of as being a safe place for his daughter Maggie to grow up in.

As for Manya…well, Manya had been a wreck until the day they buried the Sheriff. Then she had caught sight of his son Harden, crying hysterically as they laid his father's body in the parched and lonely earth. After that, the old girl pulled herself together and took the little guy by the hand, promising that from now on, they would look after each other.

And that's how things had been until one day, Gob had heard a broadcast on the radio that Raven Rock had been completely destroyed and the girl from 101 was with the Brotherhood of Steel, on her way to finish the Enclave once and for all!

That day, whether Shelley knew it or not, it was that news that gave the citizens of Megaton a sense of justice in knowing that those bastards were now going to pay for what they had done here.

It had been time to move on.

* * *

"…hey…you still with us, dolly?"

"Sorry what?" Shelley blinked rapidly after realising that she had been staring blankly into space, and turned to see Billy looking at her with concern.

"I asked if you were still with us." He said softly. "You kind of zoned out there for a while, and you've been pushing those eggs around for five minutes now. You feeling okay?"

"I'm fine." She said, smiling weakly as she ate another mouthful even though her appetite had disappeared and the fluffy yellow eggs now tasted like ash…

"You're fine, huh?" Billy shrugged. "If you say so, only my guess is you're thinking about the stuff we talked about earlier. I understand if you're a little freaked out, you know. It's kind of a lot to take in…"

"I said I'm fine!" Shelley coloured as she heard the bitter tone in her voice. "Sorry about that. I'm good…really."

Billy raised a dubious eyebrow and Shelley sighed heavily.

"Okay, okay…you're right." She gave up on finishing her food and dropped the fork onto her plate. "It's just that I can't help but feel responsible for all this. Let's be honest, if I hadn't lived here then the Enclave would never have come looking, none of this would have happened and Nathan would have been fine, and Simms would still be alive…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Billy held up his hands and then grasped her by the shoulders. "You can't be saying things like that, Shelley! _If_ is real stupid word, and it only ever seems to make folks feel worse about things they've done or think they should have done. You did what you _had_ to do out there, just like Lucas Simms did what he had to when he faced off against that Enclave asshole. The man knew the risks Shelley, but he chose to make a stand! Blaming yourself for that decision ain't gonna change what happened, and it sure as hell ain't gonna help you in the long term if you start dwelling on things you couldn't possibly have had any control over!

Sure the Enclave came here looking for you, but do you really think that trouble wouldn't have come to Megaton if you _hadn't_ been around? You've been outside these walls, dolly! Hell, if it wasn't the Enclave searching for the latest _enemy of democracy,_ then it could just as easily have been a bunch of raiders looking to tear through here like a pack of wild dogs with nothing on their minds but killing or screwing anyone they got their hands on. Living with trouble is the price we pay for staying free, and I know that Simms wouldn't have blamed you for what happened here anymore than I do! You're a part of this town, Shelley. Megaton is your home and you'll always be welcome. And you know what, Sheriff Simms would have said the same thing if he were here now. You gotta let it go, dolly."

Looking into his liquid brown eye, there was no doubting his sincerity and Shelley found herself being drawn into his comforting embrace as Billy folded his arms around her.

"Billy…" She whispered hoarsley, trying to fight back the tears that were burning in her eyes. "I don't know what I'd do without you…you're one of the best friends I've ever had."

"Right back at you." Billy replied, his own voice tight with emotion. "You know I'll always be here for you, dolly. Always…"

"Well-well, so the wanderer has returned!" Shelley jumped slightly as she turned to see Jenny Stahl regarding her with a decidedly cool expression. "Andy told me you were back. I'm surprised you never said anything though, Billy."

"Jenny, honey!" Billy coughed and quickly rose to his feet before rushing around the other side of the counter to give the strawberry-blonde an affectionate kiss. "Hey sweetheart. I _was_ going to tell you Shelley was back, but we kinda got talking. You know how it is when you're catching up with old friends."

"I guess." Despite his reassurance, Jenny still looked wary, and she possessively wrapped her arm around his Billy's waist, before fixing Shelley with an accusative stare. "So you two have been together all day?"

"I helped Billy out with the carvan this morning." Shelley answered, unwilling to be drawn into a domestic. "It took a little longer than we anticipated and then he was filling me in on current events. Speaking of which, I'm so glad you two finally hooked up. It's been a long time coming."

"Oh...thank you." Jenny's demeanour seemed to thaw a little and she even smiled. "We haven't really been together that long, but it seems to be working."

Billy gazed lovingly at his girlfriend and Shelley grinned. "So I gather!"

"So just when did you get back, vaultie?" Andy Stahl asked, breaking into the conversation as he emerged from inside the Brass Lantern's kitchen. "I thought you'd be gone for good this time."

Shelley folded her arms over her chest as she coolly appraised the younger Stahl brother. "I got back late last night." She stated, sensing nothing but barely contained hostility from the guy. "I would have called in to see Billy a lot sooner, only it was a little too late to be making housecalls."

"Well last night, he wouldn't have been home anyway." Andy said with a hint of resentment. "Billy spends most of his time with Jenny now."

"Come on, Andy." Jenny sighed, surprising her by frowning at her younger brother. "There's no need to be like that. Shelley and Billy are just good friends, that's all."

"Damn right, honey." Billy agreed, hugging her in reassurance. "And as it happens, Andy, I already told Shelley all about Jenny and me and she was real happy for us. Ain't that right, dolly?"

She nodded emphatically and decided to try and be nice for her friend's sake. "That's right. Anything that makes Billy happy, makes me happy and from what I've seen...Jenny's got that covered."

"That may be." Andy muttered as he pushed past the couple and leaned on the counter. "But the thing is, trouble seems to follow you around vaultie, and with Leo gone I gotta look out for my family." He looked at Shelley with sheer contempt. "You know after you were gone, some people came looking for you. First some vault-trash punk who thought he was such a hard-ass. He had a real shitty attitude, but he soon moved on after I told him you weren't here. Then it was the Enclave, and thanks for that by the way. We really enjoyed having them here, tearing up the place and torturing innocent folks just to find out where you'd got to. Funny thing though, it's not like the trouble only started after you left, I mean before you went there was all that business with Jericho. Guy was fine with me, even had a crush on my sister before you showed up, and then suddenly he's accused of being a rapist and that asshole Moriarty goes all psycho on his ass…?"

"Andy!" Jenny exclaimed, shock and revulsion robbing her face of colour. "You've got no idea what you're talking about!"

"No he doesn't." Shelley stated flatly, fingering the pistol at her hip. "And if we weren't all friends here, I have already blown his head clean off his fucking shoulders for coming out with that bullshit…but I hear your brother's been through a lot recently and I think can forgive his mistake, this time."

It had to be said that there was a more than a little satisfaction in seeing the nervous look on Andy Stahl's face at that moment.

"Andy…" Billy growled, his brows creasing. "You owe these two ladies an apology right now."

"What the hell for?" Apparently Stahl's bravado prevented him from thinking before he spoke...

"For being a prick!" Jenny answered before Billy could speak again. "Jesus Christ Andy! I know you're my brother and all, but you are way out of line!"

"Oh really? I'm out of line?" Stahl glared accusatively at his sister. "Well fuck that! I'm not apologising for telling the goddamn truth! You all act like she's some kind of hero, but from where I'm standing, she's been the reason for all the problems in Megaton since she first arrived. You think I'm happy to see her? You think Manya will be happy to see her? Hell no. She'd have been better off staying outside with the rest of the wasteland trash. She doesn't belong here and she never did."

Stahl angrily pushed past his sister and disappeared back inside the Brass Lantern. The awkward silence that followed was almost deafening.

"I'm sorry, Shelley." Jenny whispered eventually, her face flushed with shame. "I'm really sorry. I just don't understand what's gotten into him lately and he shouldn't have said those things…I…I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it." Shelley replied, her face an impassive mask as she fought to keep control of her guilt and anger. "It was…ah, time I was going anyhow. I'm sure you and Billy have better things to do, and I gotta go see Walter about my water supply. I'll catch you guys later."

"Billy, make her stop…Shelley wait!" Jenny reached out to stop her leaving, and quickly withdrew her hand when she saw the look on her face. "Listen, I know it's not a good time right now, but I have an idea."

Despite the urge to go, Shelley paused and Jenny inhaled deeply before continuing.

"Listen, why don't the three of us meet up later and we can try get to know each other a little better?"

Billy caught Shelley's eyes and laid a hand on his girlfriends arm. "Honey, I don't think…"

"Just hear me out!" Jenny protested, determined not to let it go. "Shelley, I know what my brother said was wrong and I know that we weren't exactly close before you left, but you're one of Billy's best friends and you're such a big part of his life that I just thought we could start over. I'm a part of his life now too and if the two of us can't get on, then it's only going to hurt Billy in the long run. And I know I can't ever apologise enough for what Andy said to you, but maybe I can buy you a few drinks and try to make a start. So…what do you say?"

"Yeah." Shelley was as surprised as Billy when she heard the words spill out of her mouth. "Yeah, why not?"

"Great!" Jenny exclaimed, visibly relaxing. "Then we'll both meet you at the Saloon about eight."

Billy flashed her an alarmed glance. "Saloon? Moriarty's Saloon?"

"Of course." Jenny replied, looking puzzled. "You know another saloon in Megaton?" She turned back to Shelley. "Besides, I thought that since you and Moriarty were quite close, I figured he'll be dying to see you again too. Also, half the town will be in there and at least that way, they'll all know you're home and you don't have to deal with hearing _oh, you're back_ every day for the next month or so."

"Uh, honey. I don't know if that's such a good idea…"

"It's okay, Billy." Shelley said softly, although her insides were knotting at the prospect. "I mean I do live here don't I, and I guess I'll have to face…everyone sooner or later. At least this way, I'll be among friends, right?"

"Right." Billy agreed, though the concern was very evident in his voice. "But just remember I meant what I said okay, about being here?"

She sighed. "Don't worry, I remember. Anyway, I gotta go, see you later."

With a sick feeling churning in her stomach and a growing sense of weariness, Shelley began to take a slow walk up the beaten track toward the water plant. Despite everything she had first thought when she came back, the town _had_ changed and the people had changed along with it. She had been wrong to assume that everything would still be the same, and that nothing she had done over the past year would affect any of the other residents here, but hearing about the Enclave's brief occupation and Lucas Simms' death had forced her to deal with a stark reality.

Her old life in Megaton was over.

And there was no going back.

* * *

**Hey Guys!**

**Sorry this chapter took a while to get up there, but it was a real tough one to write (and re-write…lots!) as once I started, I realised that the way the some of the townsfolk would react to Shelley's return wouldn't be quite so straightforward.**

**Hope you enjoyed it and I'll try not to be so late with the next chapter!**

**As ever, my deepest thanks for reading and reviewing. It makes it all worthwhile **

**Gixx**


	4. The Bottle

THE BOTTLE

Swallowing down a mouthful of whiskey from the almost empty bottle, Colin Moriarty couldn't help but be grateful that it sure had a way of taking the edge off things. It mostly dulled the stabbing pain in his aching leg, just about washed away the tang of cheap cigarettes, and normally it dulled his senses enough to be able to deal with the bullshit he found himself faced with everyday in the saloon.

Normally.

But not today.

Today the only thing it seemed to be doing was making him feel even worse about what had happened with Shelley last night.

Jesus...what was he thinking and what the fucking hell had happened to his self-control?

Usually he was the kind of man who knew exactly what he wanted, not to mention what he didn't want, and the way he'd just caved in like that when he saw her...it...well, it just wasn't what he'd intended.

Not what he'd intended at all.

It was like she still had a hold on him. A hold so strong that no matter how much whiskey he drank, it still couldn't wash away the taste of her kisses, nor rid his memory of the way she felt when she pressed herself against him. Even when he raised the bottle to his lips, he could still smell the lingering scent of her pussy on his fingers, reminding him of how she'd called his name when he entered her.

For fuck's sake...

Moriarty snorted derisively and took another swig of the amber liquor, emptying the contents in one gulp.

Be damned if he was going to sit here letting his feeling's get the better of him.

Feelings!

What feelings?

He sounded like a fucking lovesick teenager, not a middle aged saloonkeeper with a business to run!

Problem was, sure'n his feelings_ had _got the better of him truth be told. As soon as he saw her with that look on her face, and the old fire in her eyes as she'd bollocked him for being such a bastard, he'd had no chance. All he wanted to do was hold her, to tell her that he loved her as much now as when she'd crept out of his bed like a whore in the night, leaving him alone with his pathetic dreams of something that she obviously thought wasn't meant to be.

Selfish bitch.

Why the hell had she done that anyway? Why the hell had she left him there looking like a fool, and a bloody _old _fool at that, for all those other arseholes in Megaton to point the finger and laugh at?

They already thought the girl was crazy to be shacking up with the town's resident _whoremongering Irish bartender..._

Sure'n he knewthat that's what they thought, even if they wouldn't dare say it to his face. Hell, none of the pricks round here would ever have the balls to set themselves up against Colin Moriarty, not unless they wanted their faces smashed in and their arses handed to them...but that wasn't really the thing that was eating him up inside...oh no.

Moriarty sighed miserably and wiped a calloused hand over his sunburned face.

He was sick to his guts because he was pretty sure he would have given her everything he had just to make Shelley happy.

Everything.

Jesus, just the idea of spending every morning of his life waking up to that smile o'hers as she rode him like a she-devil was something he had finally gotten used to, and he was actually looking forward to settling down with the lass. But then she'd more or less thrown it all back in his face, upping and leaving with nothing but a scrap of paper by way of an explanation and a feeling of emptiness that hurt so badly he thought he'd never get over it.

But he did get over it didn't he?

Sure...sure he was over it.

_She's made you weak, Mr Moriarty. And when you're weak, you're vulnerable_…

Bullshit! He wasn't weak, he was strong!

In fact, he was completely done with all that shit and nothing was ever going to convince him that it would be a good idea t'start all over again!

Nothing!

But then a few hours ago, in she'd walked...strolling into the saloon as bold as brass with apparently nary a second thought about the things they'd said to each other the night before, or the things they had done to each other the night before...

He shuddered as his eyes drifted up from his empty bottle to the small party going on in the side-room of the bar.

Shelley was right there sure enough, watching him over her drink, surrounded by a bunch of sycophants who'd all congregated round her like she was a fucking saint or something. They were all in alright, Billy Creel, the Stahl girl, Lucy West and a couple of her friends, along with Moira Brown and that mercenary guard of hers who usually never left the Craterside Supply unless he was paying a visit to Nova. Even tired old Walter had left his post at the water plant to come buy a drink for the Ranger of the Wasteland, and herself was sat there in the middle of it all with a fixed grin on her face, looking like she wanted to run a mile.

She never could stand the fucking hero worship.

Of course, those other arseholes didn't know that. None of them knew her in the way that he did and no one in town had ever been as close to her as Colin Moriarty. Not even Billy Creel could say he'd shared her innermost thoughts and desires…though it was certainly not from want of trying.

Moriarty grinned broadly as he wondered if Jenny Stahl knew just how close Creel had wanted to be to the lass. Perhaps if she'd seen the way he used to follow her around like a dog in heat, she'd not be so fucking happy to be sat there playing hostess and laughing along with all of Creel's shitty jokes.

Love's young dream, eh?

Bollocks.

A fresh round of cheers went up from the crowd as Gob skirted round the table and carried over a tray of beers. The ghoul was beaming like he'd just had a blow-job from a New Vegas hooker, and as he passed one of the chilled bottles to Shelley, it was like he was awarding her a fucking medal or something. Course, she just smiled that grand smile of hers before standing up and throwing her arms around his neck and kissing his rotten cheek like he was just a regular customer and not an employee with a job to do.

Huh, the lass never had understood the difference between business and pleasure...

"Gob!" Moriarty yelled, gesturing at the empty whiskey bottle. "When you're done playin' nice with the rest of the kiddies, I'm needin' another drink here!"

The ghoul jumped back nervously. "S...sorry Mister Moriarty. I was just saying hi to Shelley. She's back from the wasteland you see, and I wanted to..."

"I don't give a fuck what you wanted to do." He snarled, ignoring the uncomfortable looks he was receiving from the happy, clappy crowd in the corner. "You're paid to serve drinks, not stand around entertainin' the guests! Now get your rotten arse over here and bring me another whiskey!"

Muttering insincere apologies under his breath, Gob hurried over and kept a wary distance as he rushed past into the stockroom out back. Moriarty watched in silence as the ghoul grabbed a bottle of the good stuff and then quickly passed it over with hands that were shaking like he had a bad case of rad sickness.

Well, worse than the one that had robbed him his skin anyhow…

"About fuckin' time."

Gob flinched at his tone, but there was a hint of defiance in his milky eyes. "I gotta say Mister Moriarty, I thought you of all people would be over there…saying hello I mean."

"Oh, you thought that did you?" Moriarty tried to sound disinterested, focusing instead on the stubborn bottlecap that remained firmly attached no matter how much he yanked at it. "And why's that?"

Gob shrugged. "Well, I thought you and Shelley were, um, close..."

Damn thing wasn't budging...

"...and I figured you'd be looking forward to spending some time with her."

Jesus but his fingers felt like they were moving through molasses and the fucking bottlecap was still stuck tighter than a virgin's cunt...

"I mean, she asked about you when she first came in."

It was fucking annoying...almost as annoying as the ghoul's rasping voice…

"She looked kind of sad I think." Gob was _still _speaking, blissfully unaware of how much he was pissing him off right now. "And I know she'd really like to talk to you..."

"Jesus Christ Gob!" Moriarty slammed down the bottle and it shattered. "Don't you ever fuckin' shut up, boy!"

He saw the ghoul shrink back as shards of broken glass covered the bar, and then he felt the spilled whiskey soaking through his pants.

A few patrons looked up from their beers in alarm, but they could fuck off. If they wanted to drink in his saloon, they could fucking deal with a few breakages and a man losing his temper now and then…

But then he felt her beside him.

Oh great.

"Colin…you okay?"

He knew what her expression would be long before he actually turned round to see Shelley regarding him with a look on her face that almost ripped his guts out. It was a look that required a fixed grin and an air of indifference from him, even if his heart was thumping in his chest so loud he swore she could hear it.

"Ah well, if'n it isn't the hero herself, and in me own humble establishment too. Tell me, do what do I owe this honour, lass?"

She pointedly ignored his sarcastic comments and gestured toward his hand. "You've cut yourself. Need help with that?"

Moriarty frowned as he peered curiously at what appeared to be a fresh wound in his palm. He hadn't even noticed that it had happened.

"Well look at that, me hand's bleedin'." He shrugged unconcernedly and glared at Gob who was watching the pair of them with a decidedly uneasy expression. "Don't just stand there, boy. Get me bar towel, and not one that's covered in shite either!"

"Yessir..."

Moriarty watched as Gob rushed off only to return a moment later with a rag from out back. It wasn't clean but it would do. Snatching it from the shaking ghoul, Moriarty began to tightly bind his hand before scowling. "Gob, is there a reason you're still stood here or should you be doin' somethin' useful like servin' the fuckin' customers!"

The ghoul muttered something under his breath.

"What was that?"

"I said I'm sorry, Mister Moriarty." One look into his rheumy eyes showed he was anything but sorry. "I'd...I'd better go see if they need anything over there."

A group of wastelanders had come in after a hard day's travelling and the ghoul stalked over to intercept them before they sat down.

"Make sure'n you ask them if they want some tail!" Moriarty called, making a fist as his hand began to ache. "Nova should be finished upstairs in about ten minutes or so, and I'm sure she can squeeze in a few more lucky lads before the night's out!"

There was something cruelly amusing in seeing the expression on Gob's face at that moment, but there was no time to enjoy it as his attention was called back to his current problem.

"Shit Colin." Shelley's face was dark and her lip was curling in disgust. "What the hell's the matter with you?"

"There's nothing the matter with me lass." He lied, aware that half the people in the saloon were busy trying not to look like they were watching them both. "Although, isn't it always the way that you're lookin' forward to a quiet night and then your ex turns up with a bunch of her friends and fucks-up your plans. Life's a bitch that way, eh little girl?"

Her closeness was like torture…

"Why are you being like this?" She asked in a firm but even voice. "You're the one that called it off last night, remember? Besides, I'm not here to make things difficult for you. My friends just wanted to buy me a few drinks that's all."

"Friends is it?" He glanced over to see Billy Creel watching him with a face like thunder. "Wasn't it not so long ago that Creel was sniffin' under your skirt t'see if he could get a piece? I know he's fuckin' the Stahl girl now but I'll bet he'd want t'be a lot more'n friends if you gave him half a chance."

"For god's sake, Colin." Her cheeks flushed red.

"Actually, d'ya think he'd want t'do the two of you, together like?" He looked her up and down. "See if you're into that sort o'thing, I could offer you a position here workin' with Nova. Men pay well t'be able to have two pretty girls at the same time and it seems t'me you'll be needin' a new way t'earn some caps around here."

He expected her hand to come flying to his face, but instead Shelley just looked at him like she was seeing right through to his soul.

Felt like it anyhow...

"You gonna tell me what's really pissing you off?" She looked round anxiously as her voice rose. "Last night you said you loved me and tonight you're acting like I'm nothing, less than nothing even. What the hell is going on with you?"

"Let's just say that last night I was caught off guard." Moriarty sneered as her brows rose. "Now...well, I guess you could say I've had a little time to think it over and I've realised that I was wrong. See a man like me isn't really the type t'settle down and have himself a pretty girl at his beck and call, and I don't need t'be dealing with all that emotional lovey-dovey bullshit anyway. And frankly, if'n the urge to fuck comes over me, well...there's always Nova."

His voice must have been carrying as a few more people looked up to watch the exchange.

"So that's all this is about? This is your way of telling me you're not really the commitment type?" Shelley was becoming more annoyed by the minute, but her gaze was still defiant. "See, I don't buy it. I think you're just talking like this so you get to look like the big man in front of everyone in the saloon, and what's more, I also think there's something that's bugging the shit out of you, but you're not telling me. Something so big that, judging from the look in your eyes and the way you're shaking right now, has turned you into a fucking wreck!"

_She's made you weak, Mr Moriarty. And when you're weak, you're vulnerable_…

"Fuck you, little girl!" Moriarty spat as the words burned red hot into his consciousness. "I'm simply tellin' you how it is, and as for the shakin'...well I just haven't drank enough yet! Anyway, you done here lass 'cos I got a fuckin' saloon to run in case you hadn't noticed."

"Looks like the whiskey isn't helping much with that." Shelley frowned as she deliberately kicked at pieces of broken glass. "Maybe you should slow down a little..."

"Holy...and where do you get off tellin' a man how to drink?" He rose from his seat a little too quickly and had to grab the bar rail to stop from falling on his face. "This is my saloon darlin'! And what I do in here ain't no business o'yours!"

Feeling angry and a tad unsteady on his feet, Moriarty weaved uncertainly toward the stockroom and grabbed another bottle. He didn't bother to fuck about with the cap this time and simply smashed it against the doorframe before taking a long swig from the broken neck. Shelley just watched him with those knowing grey eyes of hers and self-consciously glanced toward the group in the sideroom.

"What's the matter, little girl?" He asked, grinning at her discomfort. "You worried about what your little friends might think?"

"Actually I'm worried about you, Colin." She actually looked like she meant it. "I've never seen you like this."

"Well you haven't seen much o'me at all for the past year." He bit back, leaning aggressively over the bar. "'Cept last night o'course but then again, you always was well acquainted with me cock!"

"Hey, Mister Moriarty!"

He was momentarily taken aback when Gob jabbed a rotten finger into his shoulder.

"Excuse me, Mister Moriarty but I think I can handle things tonight…if you wanna go rest up for while that is." The ghoul was unusually calm as he spoke, but the Irishman couldn't miss the nod of his tattered head as he gestured toward the other customers in the saloon.

In his drunken state, Moriarty hadn't even noticed that the bar had now grown deathly quiet and nearly everyone was staring at him like he was some kind of madman.

Fuckin' hell...maybe he was...

Inhaling slowly, Moriarty forced himself to relax and then set down the broken bottle

"Maybe I don't need anymore o'this stuff tonight." He muttered as he pulled out a packet of cigarettes from the sleeve of his tee. "Doesn't seem to be agreein' with me, or perhaps it's the company."

Giving Shelley one of his most disarming smiles, he gingerly made his way from behind the bar toward the saloon door and then paused.

"Oh and Gob, forget about runnin' the saloon tonight. I'll be fine once I've had meself a break. I just need some air t'clear me head." Then he added loudly, as if nothing had happened. "And give all these folks a beer would you! The Ranger of the Wasteland is back in Megaton and the drinks are on the house!"

Sure there were a few snide insults from certain people who should've known better, but mostly they were drowned out by the scattered cheers from the other customers applauding his decision to give them all free beer.

However, as he opened the door to take in the night air and clear his head, it was her voice he heard softly calling to him.

"What's happened to you, Colin…?"

Problem was, be damned if he could bring himself to answer her, and as he quickly stepped through the open door to avoid the question, he could only think about how much it hurt to leave it like that.

And how much he'd never wanted to.

* * *

Biting the inside of her lip to keep from screaming out in frustration, Shelley was aware that the smile she was wearing had become as thin as the atmosphere when Colin had eventually come walking back into the room. God knows he'd taken plenty of time to cool off and calm down, but it still didn't make things any easier seeing him limp back in with a look on his face that was as sour as curdled brahmin milk. A few people looked up as he passed, obviously hoping that the _entertainment_ was going to continue, but to give the guy his due, Colin simply passed her without a second glance and settled on a barstool to watch over his precious saloon.

For a second Shelley considered going over to him to try and talk things out, but then she quickly dismissed the idea. It had been hard enough the first time, just standing there like an idiot while everyone stopped what they were doing to watch what was left of her relationship publicly explode, but worse than that was the way that her so-called friends had then thought they had the right to comment on her life and offer up their unwanted opinions on the subject.

_You're better off without him…Guy always was an prick…It was bound to happen sooner or later…You're too good for him…He doesn't know what he's missing…_

And the old chestnut…

_There's plenty more fish in the sea…_

Yeah.

She really needed to hear that right now like she needed a hole in the head.

Choosing instead to swallow any bitter retorts along with her last mouthful of beer, Shelley was grateful that at least Billy seemed to have noticed her darkening mood and had drawn off most of the party with the pretence of setting up a poker game, in order to give her a little space. After a while, even those folks who had failed to take the hint finally drifted away and left her alone to gather her thoughts and try and figure out what the hell was happening.

Or more to the point, what the hell was going on with Colin.

Sure he was drinking, heavily, but that was nothing really new. The fact he was doing it now, during the saloon open hours, _that_ was the worrying part. In fact, for a man who liked to be in control and act like he was lord of all he surveyed, letting himself get so bad so early in the evening was completely out of character and there _had _to be more to it than he was letting on.

There had to be.

Otherwise why would he be acting like such an asshole, and why would he have turned on her so completely. It wasn't like he hadn't hurt her enough last night when he'd cast her aside after emptying his goddamn balls.

But then to _humiliate_ her like that in front of everybody...

Shelley scowled as she distractedly began to dig her fingernails into the rough wooden surface of the table-top, and breathed in deeply to calm the sudden onrush of emotion that was threatening to strip away what was left of her composure. As she fought to regain her control, she let her eyes drift past the crowd of happy revellers to the darker corners of the saloon and it was only then that she noticed the guy sat in the shadows.

Thing was, he didn't seem to fit the usual wasteland stereotype. For one thing, he was dressed in a suit and tie, with an old-fashioned trilby on his head, and his eyes were hidden behind a pair of shaded glasses. The suit itself was a little dirty and the pinstriped linen had yellowed with age, but as far as she could tell it was in pretty decent condition and fitted him well. There was also something vaguely familiar about him, and when he saw her looking his way he politely raised his glass by way of a greeting. Raising her own empty bottle, Shelley nodded in acknowledgement and was rewarded with a somewhat enigmatic smile.

An unmistakeable feeling in her bladder suddenly distracted her from any further musings, and reminded her that she needed to go to the bathroom. The timing was pretty good actually, as everyone else seemed busy doing something and if she managed to make it there without being spotted by anyone, then perhaps she could sneak out the back afterwards and call it a night.

As she rose from her chair and walked past the bar, she felt Colin's eyes following her. Lifting her head to meet his gaze, she was surprised to see a flash of softness in his expression and for a moment, it was though he was going to speak…but then his face creased as he took another swallow of the whiskey she thought he'd abandoned, and began to shout at Gob for yet another unknown misdemeanour.

Fine…if that's the way he wanted to play it then fuck him!

She hadn't fought her way across half the wasteland just to come begging the old bastard to take her back like she was one of his whores looking for a hand-out!

Whatever his issues, he had no right to make her feel like this! He had no right to take everything she had to give and then piss all over it like it was nothing! He had no right to make her look like some kind of pathetic loser in front of all her friends! He had not right to think that he could just treat her like that and expect her to be fine with it all when he came crawling back like the dog that he was!

He had no right! No right…!

_Damn._

Shelley scowled once more as yet again, tears threatened to spill down her cheeks. Hauling up her slacks and yanking her belt tight around her waist, she stared angrily at her reflection in the dirty mirror and willed herself to stop crying before she even got started! Frankly, she had no intention of spending the next ten minutes sobbing in the saloon's filthy public toilet, only to give Moriarty the satisfaction of seeing her face when she came out.

Screw that!

_Come on, Shelley, pull yourself together. What would Charon say if he could see you now?_

As much as thinking about the tall ghoul made her feel even more lonely, there was also some comfort in remembering his calming presence and stoic nature. It was just one of those things that the more time they had spent travelling together, the more comfortable he had grown in her presence and Charon always seemed to know what to say to her, or what not to say as the case may be…although, no doubt his opinion on her current situation with Colin would probably have been expressed with the business end of his shotgun.

He never did do subtle.

Despite her melancholy, Shelley couldn't resist the stubborn smile that tugged at the corner of her lips as she yanked on the makeshift flush. It quickly disappeared as she realised the damned thing was broken as usual, and she had to throw a couple of mugs of water down the pan to clear it before she pulled back the curtain and stepped back out into the bar.

She was surprised to see that the man in the suit was now talking to Colin, and from the way he looked up suddenly, it appeared they had been discussing her.

That's when her memory kicked in

She had seen this guy before.

"My, my…." Familiar face or not, the suit's voice was unexpectedly rough and deep. "Moriarty, won't you please introduce me to this delightful creature?"

"I suppose, if you insist." Colin's lip curled as if he had just swallowed something bitter. "This here lass is Shelley Annabel Nolan, none other than the Ranger of the Wasteland herself and a girl gets what she wants…most of the time." A clumsy jibe, easily ignored. "Shelley, this fine gentleman goes by the name of Mister Burke. He's a new man about town, so he is."

"A pleasure to meet you, my dear." Burke purred with a tip of his hat. "If I may be so bold?"

Shelley's eyes narrowed as he touched his lips to the back of her hand.

"Um, thank you Mister Burke, but there's no need for such formality. We've already met."

Burke stiffened slightly, then smiled. "Ah yes of course. During that unfortunate incident at Tenpenny Tower. A regrettable outcome to a difficult situation."

"Regrettable outcome…?" Shelley frowned, puzzled by Burke's apparent lack of hostility.

"Why, yes." He smiled again. That curiously enigmatic smile. "Regrettable in that your actions resulted in the deaths of so many innocents, and yet compared to the lives you have saved, it was a mere drop in the proverbial ocean."

"I…that wasn't supposed to happen." Shelley flushed as she remembered pleading with Alistair Tenpenny to allow the ghouls from the Warrington Tunnels to live in the Tower alongside their smoothskin neighbours. "Before he became a ghoul, Roy Phillips was a cop, a lawman. I had no idea he would turn on everyone like that and…"

"No one is accusing you of anything, my dear." Burke shook his head. "I am certain that if you had known the ghouls would murder all of the former residents, then you would not have campaigned so vigorously to secure their admittance."

Out of the corner of her eye, Shelley could see that Colin's bottle had ceased its journey to his lips, and he was now watching Burke like a hawk.

"As a matter of fact…" Burke continued, brushing absently at his lapels. "I imagine if you had been aware of their intentions then you would have campaigned just as vigorously to see that they were driven away permanently, and not given the chance to brutally slaughter those civilised people in their own beds. However, I can understand your mistake and even forgive your unfortunate error in judgement. Seeing you interact with that hulking bodyguard of yours…oh, what was his name again?"

"Charon."

"Yes, Charon." Burke leaned against the bar and looked at Colin. "You've never seen him have you, Moriarty? A tall, well-built ghoul who must have been something of a heart-throb back in the days when he had skin." He turned back to Shelley. "Anyway, I heard that the two of you were very close and that he was more akin to a faithful dog than a mindless thug. It's no wonder that you thought those other unfortunates would be cut from a similar jib, so to speak. I'm sure that anyone in your position, with such positive and intimate experience of ghoul companionship would have made the same mistake."

"Well, that's very magnanimous of you." Shelley felt anger coiling inside her gut as Colin's face darkened with jealousy. "Forgive me for being so blunt, Mister Burke, but is there point to all this bullshit?"

"Oh, not as such." Burke replied, that irritating smile of his now firmly back in place. "I was merely letting you know that there are no hard feelings about everything on my part. I may have worked for Mister Tenpenny, and was even offered the opportunity to keep my position under Mr Phillips, but I decided to take the opportunity to spread my wings and found myself here in this, rather rustic settlement of Megaton."

"For which we're all grateful, I'm sure." Colin muttered under his breath.

Burke ignored him. "And speaking of opportunity, I was wondering if you yourself had given any thought to what you are going to do now that you are back home? I hear that the position of town sheriff is currently vacant, and I expect someone with your ability is more than qualified to assume the role."

"Me?" Shelly almost choked with shock. "What makes you think…"

"Excuse me, guys." Billy Creel politely shouldered his way into the conversation and looked meaningfully toward the saloon door. "Hey Dolly, me and Jenny are headed out to grab something to eat. You wanna tag along?"

Shelley could have kissed him. "Now that you mention it, I am kind of hungry. If you two gentlemen, would excuse me?"

"Of course, my dear." Burke stepped back politely, but then gently lay a hand upon her arm. "But do think on the position won't you? I think you would make an excellent town sheriff, don't you agree Mister Creel?"

"Shelly become the new sheriff?" He grinned broadly as the idea took hold. "Actually, that's a great idea! Man, folks would only too happy to see you take that job, dolly. I just know they'd feel a whole lot safer with you being here looking out for them."

"I'll consider it." Shelley snapped irritably, heading towards the door and wary of Mister Burke's sudden interest in her employment status. "Listen, I'm just too tired to even think about it right now, and it's been a long day. Do you mind if we just go?"

She didn't wait around to see if Billy was following her and strode across the floor in desperate need of some air. God knows, the bizarre turn of events that had occurred during the evening seemed to have drained whatever energy she had left, and all Shelley wanted to do was to fall into bed to let sleep rob her of consciousness and stop her mind from whirling.

She barely heard Burke's fond words of farewell as she threw open the saloon door, and then leaned on the balcony railing to steady herself.

Seeing Colin again so soon after he had hurt her so badly, that had been a mistake.

Letting Burke get to her as he reminded her of one of her greatest failures, that had been another mistake.

Coming home…shit, had that been a mistake too?

"You okay, dolly?"

Shelley turned around slowly as Creel emerged from the saloon with Jenny hanging off his arm.

"No." She answered honestly, feeling the weight of her problems pressing down mercilessly on her shoulders. "I am far from fucking okay."

Billy whispered something to Jenny and she rather reluctantly left them alone, making for the house she shared with her brothers. Not however, without throwing Shelley a glance that said _keep off_ in no uncertain terms.

"Is it Moriarty?" Billy asked, waiting until his girlfriend was out of sight before slipping a reassuring arm around her waist. "I'm sorry, dolly. But what he did back there, what he said to you…guy's nothing but a dirty bastard. A pure-bred, loud-mouthed, dirty bastard. Like I said, I am sorry and all that, but I never did see why you were even with him!"

"It doesn't matter now anyway." Shelley sighed, resting her head against Billy's shoulder. "Besides, after tonight I'm too goddamn tired to care anymore. Hell, I probably just need to get some sleep, that's all. Get my head on straight, you know?"

"Sure, I understand." Billy's voice was soothing and he held her close. "Listen, Shelley. Don't let things get to you, okay. You're so much stronger than this and you deserve better."

She lifted her head. "You're the only one that seems to think so."

His smile was as warm as ever. "I never doubted it, dolly, not for one second. You're a real special girl. Real special…"

Suddenly his closeness was too comfortable and the way he was looking at her made her feel…

Abruptly, Shelley stepped out from his embrace.

"I…I really should go." She stammered as she backed away from the handsome ex-caravan guard. "It's been a rough night."

"Ah, yeah…okay." Billy cleared his throat and looked away. "I, um, I'll see you tomorrow…maybe. With Jenny, most likely."

"Yeah, tomorrow." Shelley practically fell over herself as she hurried to put some distance between them.

Then Billy called after her. "For what it's worth, I think Burke was right about the job."

She paused and looked cautiously over her shoulder.

"Megaton needs a sheriff, dolly, and I can't think of anyone else who could do it better than you. I think it'd be good for you, might even take your mind off…things."

Shelley smiled sadly and nodded. "I'll think about it, Billy. Good night."

"Good night, dolly."

With everything around her rapidly spinning out of control, Shelley was convinced that she'd never be able to get to sleep.

Although when her head finally hit the pillow, thankfully, she was wrong.


	5. The Day He Found Out

THE DAY HE FOUND OUT

_My father and I are staying at the Waverly Hotel in a room that looks like so much like my childhood home, that I can almost believe the events of the past year have never happened._

_But this is not Vault 101._

_This is Rivet City and although I have finally found my father, it is as if there is still a distance between us that neither of us is willing to cross._

"_So, you've been out in the Wasteland all this time?" My father looks sad, shame and regret prematurely aging his face. "I'm so sorry, sweetie. I guess I'd hoped that you'd stayed in the vault where you were safe."_

_He pushes his empty plate across the table-top and I begin to clear away the dinner things, just as I had done so many times before when we were back home._

"_You didn't really give me much choice." I say, wanting him to know how much it hurt that he left, and needing him to understand the awful cost. "After you bailed on me, the Overseer went completely crazy. He ordered a lockdown, started questioning everybody, and he ordered Stevie Mack to kill Jonas just for helping you, Daddy! You know he wanted to kill me too, and he would have if he'd gotten the chance. Thank God for Officer Gomez and Amata. If they hadn't helped me escape…"_

_When I meet my father's eyes, he looks aghast._

"_Alphonse had Jonas killed? Oh No…I didn't know. I didn't…damn it! Jonas was a good man, a good man…"_

"_Yeah well, he's a dead man now."_

"_Shelley Annabel Nolan! Don't be so damned impertinent, young lady!" He scolds me as if I'm ten years old and have been caught with my hands in the cookie jar. "As much as it pains me to say this, Jonas understood the risks he was taking, we both did. After everything he did for you, for me and for Cath…for your mother, he doesn't deserve your disrespect. Hell…he knew he'd be in trouble for helping me to get out, but neither of us thought that Alphonse would actually kill him for it..."_

_My father is angry, really angry. He's in pain too, overwhelmed with guilt and burdened by the weight of his decision. But my own anger and pain, so long denied and hidden behind the walls of determination and strength I have built around my heart in order to help me find this man I once thought of as being infallible, will no longer be contained._

"_You didn't think about a lot of things, did you?" I yell, surprising him with my rage. "You didn't think about any of the people you left behind or the effect it would have on the rest of the vault just running away like that! You didn't think about Stanley or poor Amata, or the people that got hurt in the chaos following your departure, and you certainly didn't think about me did you? Did you?"_

"_Sweetie, I never meant…"_

"_Never meant what? To leave? To hurt me? To get people killed? Well congratulations for failing on all counts there, Dad!" When I see the wounded expression on his face, I want to stop but I can't. "All you were thinking about was that fucking water project…Purity, isn't that what you call it? Obviously everything else had stopped meaning anything to you, including me. Well I hope it's worth it, Daddy! I really do!"_

_My father rises to his feet and slams his hand down in the table._

"_Now just wait a damn minute Shelley! You have no idea what I've sacrificed to bring this project to life again and believe me, if I could have done it any other way I would have! I believe in this project, Jonas believed in this project and your mother believed in this project. It was always going to be a risk working on something this important and it has cost more lives than I care to count, but if this works, if Project Purity is allowed to run its course, then think of the millions of lives we can save! Sweetie, we can bring so much hope to the Wasteland through this one act and then who knows what we can achieve?"_

_His passion almost convinces me of his chances of success._

"_You really do believe that, don't you?" I feel my anger dissolving as I finally begin to comprehend the staggering belief he has in what seems like an impossible dream. "Jesus, Daddy. You have a better opinion of people out here than I do, but did you ever stop to consider you might be wrong? What if Project Purity doesn't work? Doctor Li doesn't seem to think it will."_

"_Madison Li is a brilliant scientist, but when it comes to having a little faith, she's got a long way to go."_

_I sit down on the hard cot that serves as a makeshift couch, holding my head in my hands. My father sits beside me, pulling me into his arms and stroking my hair as he used to when I was a child. For the first time since I ventured into the wasteland, I no longer feel like I need to rescue my father, and that he is the hero I always believed him to be. I rest contentedly in his arms, feeling as safe and loved as I ever did, and I forget that it was not so long ago that we were held captive in the artificial hell that was Tranquillity Lane._

"_Listen Sweetie, I have to do this." His voice is deep and strong. "I've come too far just to let it all slip away now and if I fail, then all those lives will have been lost for nothing. Project Purity will work, it has to work and when all this is over, I swear I'll spend the rest of my life being the father you deserve. My one regret in all this, a regret that I will always carry with me to the end of my days, is that I wasn't there for you when you needed me and if I had known that the Overseer would try and hurt my precious girl…"_

_I can hear his voice breaking, feel the love he bears for me._

"_I love you, Daddy, and I do understand. It just hurts a little that's all." I mean everything I say and I feel like we can be completely truthful with each other at long last. "I guess, at the end of the day if you hadn't left, I'd still be stuck in the vault and to be honest, Megaton feels more like home than that place ever did."_

"_Megaton, really?" He chuckles softly and there is an element of surprise in his voice. "You know, I heard that some vault-dweller had disarmed the old atom bomb back there. That wouldn't be you now, would it?"_

"_What can I say? I wasn't comfortable sleeping with that thing ticking on my doorstep."_

"_Well, who'd have believed it? My little girl is the Ranger of the Wastes that I've heard so much about on the radio. Your mother would have been so proud of you, Sweetie. I know I am."_

_His words make me smile and I squeeze him tightly._

"_I'm proud of you too, Daddy. Despite everything I've said, I really am proud of you and I'm so glad that I found you again."_

_We spend some time just holding each other, renewing the father-daughter bond that I thought had been stretched almost to breaking point. It is then I realise we are so alike, my father and I. Both of us willing to take a stand and fight for what we believe in, both of us willing to do whatever it takes to see things through to the end…and both of us willing to leave behind those we love if we have to… _

_An ache in my heart reminds me that there are things I need to say, and yet as I look into my father's emerald eyes, I find that it is harder than I had ever expected._

"_Listen, when all this is done and the dust has settled, would you come back to Megaton and stay with me for a little while?" I start with an innocent invitation, preparing myself for what's to come. "I know you've probably got a hundred other things that the scientists round here will need some help with but…"_

"_I'd love to." My father doesn't hesitate, smiling fondly as he places a tender kiss on my forehead. "It's a father's prerogative to see his daughter safely home, though I really never thought you'd end up settling in Megaton of all places."_

_I shrug, feeling suddenly very self-conscious, but I need to tell him._

"_Oh I…er…have my reasons. I mean I have a nice enough place, if you can get past the rust and the heat, and there's always caravans passing through so there's usually plenty of trade to be done…and also there's, um, this guy that I've met, and I…well, I care about him very much."_

_My father's eyebrows arch and he looks intrigued._

"_You've met somebody special then? Well, don't keep me in suspense, Sweetie. I want to hear all about him. He must be quite a man to have captured the heart of my daughter."_

"_Oh, he's quite a man alright..." _

_My mouth is dry so I get up to pour myself a glass of water. I swallow hard to try and shift the ball of tension that seems to have lodged itself in my throat._

"_So…are you going to tell me about him?" My father knows me well, and I realise I have been quiet for too long. "Come on, don't keep me in suspense."_

_Where the hell do I begin…?_

"_Well, he's kind of a charmer, sort of handsome in a rugged kind of way."_

_My father claps his hand together and laughs. "Handsome, eh? Sounds just like me! There's more to life though than good looks and charm, Sweetie. Is he the kind of man who will treat you properly, give you the respect you deserve?"_

"_We understand each other well enough, although he can be a little obnoxious at times. But he's been there when I needed him most, helped me through things I could never have…dealt with otherwise. He knows me better than anyone I've ever met."_

"_Okay…and…." I recognise that tone of voice. My patient father is waiting for me to get to the point._

"_When we're together, there's never any need for pretence or for games, and he loves me for who I am and not what I've done. I can always be myself when I'm with him and we just…connected I guess. It's just that he's, um, sort of a…character…"_

_That was the wrong thing to say. My father's eyebrows shoot up in alarm._

"_Character, huh? So what is it you're not telling me? I mean, you say this guy lives in Megaton? What does he do there? Is he some sort of trader…a caravan guard perhaps?"_

"_No, not a trader. Actually he runs his own business." That's a positive, right? "Matter of fact, he runs the local saloon."_

"_But Colin Moriarty runs the only saloon in Megaton." He spits the name as if it leaves a bad taste in his mouth. "No, wait, do I understand this correctly? Are you telling me that you're…involved with Colin Moriarty?"_

_His reaction makes me slightly ashamed and all too aware of his disappointment. I begin to feel defensive. "Actually we're kind of more than involved. We're, sort of, together and from the look on your face, it looks like you have a problem with that."_

_My father leaps to his feet and clasps his hands behind his head. The look on his face is as black as the mood that seems to be overtaking him._

"_Well spit it out, Daddy!" I demand an explanation for his reaction, afraid I already know the answer. "You going to tell me what's wrong now?"_

"_What's wrong? Well for starters, he's more than twice your age!" As he speaks, his voice increases in both volume and incredulity. "He's way too old for you and not only that, but you can't trust that man! He's nothing but a criminal, for God's sake! He's known the length and breadth of the wasteland for running alcohol, drugs and…and prostitutes, Shelley! He trades in flesh for money and in my eyes that makes him nothing more than a glorified slaver! Please tell me, you're not serious about this? About him?"_

"_You'll find I'm very serious about him!" I feel I'm being scolded for playing too close to the reactor core, as if I'm unaware of the danger. "I know exactly who Colin is and I know what he does and he's certainly not a goddamn slaver! You just don't know him like I do..."_

"_Know him! Jesus Christ, I know him well enough to know that he'll just chew you up and spit you out! I've seen the way he is with women! I saw the way he looked at Catherine when we passed through all those years ago, and the things he said to her…I'm not even going to repeat them! He has no respect for anyone, Shelley! No respect at all, and nothing to offer you other than a life full of shame, and future with nothing more to look forward to than the next bottle of whiskey! All he's interested in is what he can get out of you and how fast he can get you into his bed…"_

_I become rigid and my father turns pale._

"_Shelley…Sweetie, tell me you didn't play right into his hands." He grabs me, a desperate plea in his eyes. "Tell me you're not…tell me you're not sleeping with him!"_

"_What difference does it make if I am? How could that be any worse than what you already think?" I instinctively pull out of his grasp, his disappointment burning hotter than the mid-day sun. "I'm not your little girl anymore, Daddy and I can make my own decisions! And for the record, I have been sleeping with Colin as it happens and frankly, the sex is fantastic! He makes me feel wanted and he makes me feel like a woman!"_

"_By treating you like one of his whores?" Disappointment turns quickly to outrage. "Tell me, did you fall into his bed willingly or did he pay you for his time!" _

_He regrets his words the instant they fall from his lips, but the damage is done._

_I feel sick, angry, hurt, all over again._

_How could he say those things to me? How could he…_

"_Um, excuse me." Charon speaks quietly, but loud enough to make us both jump. "I apologise for my interrupting the two of you like this, but your voices are carrying all the way down the hall."_

_I don't believe that Charon would ever hurt my father, but the look the ghoul is giving him is enough to make him back off warily._

"_Its okay, Charon." I murmur softly, resting my hand on his arm as if my touch alone can diffuse the situation. "It's time I got back to my room anyway. We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow."_

_For all that I have missed my father, I now cannot wait to be free of his disapproving stare._

"_Sweetie, wait. Please!" He reaches out, his anger evaporating as he sees I am about to leave. "I'm sorry about what I said, I really am, but it's just that...Colin Moriarty of all people. I'm…I'm so worried that he's going to hurt you, Shelley. As far as I know, Colin Moriarty never did anything except for himself. He's nothing but bad news and he'll drag you down into whatever private hell he creates in that twisted mind of his. Please believe that and believe that I'm only telling you this because I love you."_

"_You love me! Really?" My voice threatens to crack. "You see the thing is, at least he's there in the morning when I wake up…"_

_Right before my eyes, as my father lowers his gaze to the ground, his skin begins to darken and his hair becomes longer, turning from steely grey to bone white. The cold steel of the cabin warps and twists and becomes corrugated iron, the ceiling fading away to reveal the night sky as I back up, afraid to even look at this man before me._

_But then his eyes flick open, his cold blue eyes, and I cannot look away..._

"_That why you run whores, Colin?" I hear myself say. "So they can see to your needs?"_

"_They do their job alright." Moriarty growls before hurling my own words, against me. "At least they're usually there in the mornin' when I wake up..."_

* * *

Shelley's eyes flicked open as she jerked upright in her bed, and she drew several shuddering breaths before her heart ceased its frantic beating beneath the thin cotton of her vest. Although the air in the shack felt cool against her skin, she was bathed in an unpleasant layer of sweat that trickled down her back and slicked her hair to her forehead. It was still fairly dark, but a quick glance toward the window set high in the wall revealed the first weak rays of sunlight beginning to brighten the sky, alerting her to the fact it must be pretty early in the morning.

With a heartfelt groan, she wiped her hand over her face as if the very action of it would also wipe the lingering image of Colin's bitter visage from her mind, but it didn't seem to help. Relaxing back against the lumpy mattress and closing her eyes didn't seem to help either, so she tried forcing herself to think about other things.

But all in all, it was a futile effort.

If it wasn't the memory of her lover's scorn that tugged so mercilessly at her heart, it was the harsh words she had exchanged with her father that began rattling around inside her head, made all the more painful by the fact that he had been right and all the more painful that she couldn't say sorry.

Shit, just how stupid and blind had she been?

Why had she let Moriarty get under her skin so damn much?

What the fuck was she doing going over this bullshit yet again?

Goddamn it!

Scrabbling angrily to her feet, Shelley grabbed a pair of slacks from the chair at the end of the bed and yanked them on before storming down the stairs. Wadsworth was still offline, his jets quietly keeping him airborne as he hovered in the corner near her bookcase. At her approach however, his ocular light blinked on and he seemed to almost jump in surprise.

"Oh Madam, please forgive me but I appear to have overslept. I shall begin preparing your breakfast at once."

"Easy there, Wadsworth." She said, gesturing to her discarded pip-boy that lay on top of a nearby table. "It's a little early to eat."

The robo-butler clicked and whirred as he swivelled to glance at the battered vault-tec device. "Ah, I see. It appears to be 4:47am. Not the traditional time to enjoy one's early morning repast."

"No, not usually." Shelley smiled and patted the old robot as she reached for a clean, well, clean-ish shirt from the laundry and pulled it on over her head. "Saying that, I wouldn't mind a cup of coffee if we have some?"

"If we have some!" Wadsworth almost sounded put out. "I would be a disgrace to the Mister Handy line if I didn't ensure we stocked the basic essentials, Madam." Rotating on his axis, he floated off toward the kitchen with a disgruntled whoosh.

Shelley watched him for a while, wondering if she should ask someone to take a look at the robo-butler. He appeared to have developed some kind of odd personality quirk since she had been in the wasteland, but then again there was something about his behaviour that made her smile and feel a little less _lonely_, so she decided against it. Flopping down onto the couch, she stretched languidly as she tried to ease out the tension that had crept into her shoulders as she slept. Things were still praying on her mind of course, but the echoes of the dream were fading as wakefulness told hold, and another more pressing matter lodged itself in her consciousness.

Mister Burke...

Shelley's brows creased at the thought of him and something in the back of her mind began to creep its way forward. Just what the hell was he doing here in Megaton? It just didn't seem quite right. There had been something that bothered her about the guy when she had first met him in Tenpenny Tower. Although the encounter was brief, there was something in his manner that seemed both charming and repulsive at the same time. It was like he was, was, well...just not quite right. Although considering what happened to the rest of the residents of Tenpenny Tower, he was lucky to get out of that place alive.

Shelley groaned again as she leaned back and stared blankly at the ceiling.

Trying to get Alistair Tenpenny to let Roy Phillips and the other ghouls into the luxury apartment building had seemed like the best thing to do for all concerned. There had been plenty of rooms spare in Tenpenny Tower and although the other residents seemed a little freaked out by the idea of having ghouls as neighbours, they eventually came round. For his part, Roy had been quite happy to share with a 'bunch of jumped-up smoothskins', even if it meant putting up with their stuck-up bullshit from time to time. Shelley figured at least he'd get on with Herbert Dashwood. After all, the old man was one of the first to support the idea and even managed to convince some of the others that everything would be okay!

She wondered if he still thought that when the killing began.

Yeah...maybe allowing the ghouls to move in had been a bad choice.

Actually with hindsight, it turned out to have been one hell of a fuck up.

"Your beverage, Madam." Wadsworth presented her with a hot cup of aromatic black coffee and then hovered around uncertainly while she took a sip.

"This is good_._" She said with satisfied smile. "Wait, really good! Like pre-war good! Where d'you get this?"

"Mister Moriarty dropped it off when he called a few months ago." Did the old robo-butler shrug? "I think he thought you would be back from your travels, but when I pointed out that you were still absent, he just left it here. Didn't even bother to ask me how I was feeling. Dreadful manners."

Shelley frowned and then reluctantly set the cup down on a pile of books. "Yeah, well. He must have had other things on his mind."

"Yes, Madam." Something mechanical in Wadsworth's body made a noise like a snort, and he bustled off up the stairs to make the bed.

Right. Even the fucking robot disapproved of her relationship with Colin. Was there anyone in Megaton who didn't think it was any of their business? God knows Charon thought he was nothing but an asshole bartender, and he was over in...

Of course! Charon!

Leaping up from the couch, Shelley grabbed her pip-boy and checked the time. 5:13am, good. There was bound to be somebody on security detail at Tenpenny Tower and since Charon always was an early riser she was bound to catch him. If anyone would know just how Mister Burke strolled out of that situation with his slimy-ass intact, he would, and if not then Shelley was sure he wouldn't mind making some discreet enquiries for her.

It took her another fifteen minutes of tweaking and turning to finally get the battered ham radio in the corner to tune into the right frequency, but soon she was speaking into the tinny handset and listening to the static in case someone picked up at the other end.

It didn't take long.

"Tenpenny Tower, Tenpenny Tower this is Megaton calling. Do you receive, over?"

'Yeah, yeah. We receive you. Whaddya want?' It was a ghoulish voice alright, but distinctly feminine.

"Tenpenny Tower, this is Shelley Nolan of Megaton. I'm looking for a ghoul named Charon. He works security over there and is a former partner of mine. I was just wondering, is he around?"

'He may be. Hold on a second.'

For a while there was nothing but static, and Shelley wondered if the ghoul had just decided to dick her about, but then the radio crackled to life again.

'Hey.'

The masculine voice was rough, deep and stirred up all kinds of feelings when she heard its familiar rasping lilt. Suddenly it became hard to speak, and a lump formed in Shelley's throat as everything she had planned to say was choked off by an overwhelming surge of emotion.

'Hey…Shelley…are you receiving, over?'

"I'm here, Charon." She gasped, finding her own voice at last. "Sorry, I didn't mean to leave you hanging there…it's just that…god, I've missed you."

'Please, give me one moment.' Through the static, Shelley could hear the ghoul talking to someone, probably the female from earlier, and then there was the sound of a door closing. 'That's better. I am alone now and we can talk freely.'

"Thanks." Shelley sighed, and then stared blankly at the radio.

"Are you okay?"

"What…oh, yes, yes I'm fine." After taking a drink from the now decidedly cold cup of coffee, Shelley cleared her throat and tried her best to sound casual. "I'm good actually. Settling down, you know. Taking it easy. And you?"

"I am also doing well. Mister Phillips is particularly pleased with my performance, and has let me put together my own security detail. Needless to say, we do not have many problems with outsiders anymore."

"You mean you were having some problems before?"

"Raiders mostly. Punks who thought that a building full of ghouls was an easy target. We soon changed their minds."

Shelley smiled. "I'll bet. Aside from that, everything is good?"

"Yes. And how are you? Did you manage to…ah…did you manage to…sort things out with the bartender?"

She should have been prepared for his question, but it still hit her with all the force of a super sledge swung by a mutant overlord. "I'm…that is we're…sorted out, I guess. You know how it is."

"No I do not know how it is, but I can tell from the tone of your voice that there is something you are not telling me."

"Oh c'mon! I'm not likely to want to discuss my personal life with you of all people, am I?" Her answer was sharp and angry and she instantly regretted the outburst. "Sorry Charon. Touchy subject, that's all."

"So I see, but forgive me for asking this, Shelley. Has he hurt you in some way? Is that why you are calling me at this hour?"

"No and no." She sighed deeply and then seized the opportunity to change the subject. "Actually I was calling because…Charon, do you remember a guy named Burke? He worked for Alistair Tenpenny before the ghouls took over."

"Hmm, I do remember him. A slippery bastard who reminded me of Ahzrukhal. I understand he also worked for my current employer before he left, however it was a long time before I took up my position here. I do not know anything else."

"Anyone you could ask?"

"I could ask Mister Phillips about him if you need some further information."

"Please, that would be great." She chewed her lip thoughtfully. "Be discreet though. I don't want him to find out I'm checking up on him."

"Checking up…Shelley, what is going on?"

"He's here, Charon. Burke is in Megaton."

There was a long period of silence and she could almost see the expression that would be crossing Charon's ruined face as he considered her words. Eventually he spoke again.

"Do you wish for me to be there with you?"

Yes, she realised she did, but only for her own selfish reasons. "No it's fine, Charon. I can handle this on my own. After all, if guy steps out of line I can throw his ass out of town. See, you're not the only one who has a new job."

"I thought you were only returning to Megaton to settle down?"

"Well it turns out that the town needs a new sheriff, and since I'm already a Regulator…"

"I understand."

Daylight was finally creeping under the door and Shelley glanced at her pip-boy as the six thirty alarm rang out. "Listen Charon, I gotta go. Things to do, you know? But before I go, I just want to tell you that I miss you so much, but I'm glad you have new life out there and I'm happy it's working out for you."

"And I miss you too." There was an uncharacteristic softness to his voice. "We were a good team, you and I. If I may say so, your bartender is a fool not to realise what he had."

"Love makes fools of us all sometimes."

"Yes. This I know. I will be in contact once I have something for you. Take care. Charon, out."

"Look after yourself." Shelley whispered as the ghoul's voice was replaced by nothing but crackling static and white noise.

Still, it was a better alternative to being alone in the crushing silence.

* * *

**Author's note: I'm so sorry it took so long to get this up, but real life has way of interfering with my muse and this chapter was a bitch to write (Still not 100%, but I need to move this story forward now)! I haven't had chance to beta the damn thing either, so all mistakes are completely my own.**

**Gixx xXx**


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